The Red Ranger
by pauladams
Summary: A fanfiction based on the original Sentai series, Himitsu Sentai Goranger, but also with strong inspiration from the movie Iron Man. A young soldier and his brother are taken captive by a terrorist organization and must work together to escape using a specialized super-suit
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

Attack on EAGLE Base

Joshua Cage stepped up to the soccer ball, which lay softly in the green grass. He looked over the field, planning out his first maneuver. He stood tall, nearly six feet, with well-defined muscles and a short, military haircut. He was currently wearing his plain green civvies, just like the rest of his squad. He looked over the field, dotted with soldiers wearing the same, each one getting ready for the match at hand. He sized up his opposing team, playing out the kickoff in his mind, thinking through the opposing team's strengths and weaknesses and how to use them to his advantage.

He and the opposing team's captain stepped up to the ball, waiting for the whistle. Joshua locked eyes with his opponent, keeping his face still and emotionless. The whistle blew, and Joshua sprang into action. He worked the ball with his feet, getting it away from his opponent, and rushed across the field. His team rushed after him, intercepting the other team.

One crafty opponent tried to get in his way, but Joshua quickly kicked the ball out to his nearest teammate. It passed around a couple times before finally getting back to him. Almost there. Another opponent cut him off, but Joshua outsmarted and avoided her. He circled around, dodged the next one, and made a beeline across the field toward the goal.

The goalie squared up, waiting for Joshua's kick. Thanks to his teammates, no one was around to oppose him. Joshua eyed the goalie, watching his every move. This goalie was good, but Joshua found his opening. He kicked. The ball flew. The goalie ran, dived, and missed. The ball flew into the net, making the goal.

Joshua's team cheered. Joshua flashed the goalie a cocky grin. The goalie rolled his eyes, retrieving the ball and tossing it out to the nearest player on his team. The player took the ball and started bouncing it between his feet and heading the other way. Back to it, Joshua thought to himself. He chased the player across the field, playing defense now. His second-in-command, Katie Young, intercepted the opposing captain, but he managed to get past her. He made a mad dash for the goal, where Corporal Dayton Owens waited with a cocky grin on his face.

"You think you're getting past me, do you?" the bulky goalie asked.

The captain ignored him, making his shot, but Dayton deflected it easily.

"Come on, man, you've got to try harder than that," Dayton said, tossing the ball to Doug Cummins. Cummins took it, quickly passing it to Harriet Nixon.

Nixon caught it and ran with it down the field until she reached centerfield. Joshua ran alongside her, and she passed it to him when she got the chance. Joshua took it, running another long stretch of field, but got himself blocked in by the opposition. Katie appeared behind them, open and unchallenged, and Joshua passed it to her between them. Katie took it, nodding to Joshua and speeding off. Joshua grinned. There was a reason she was his second.

Katie crossed the field, the opposing team now in hot pursuit. Joshua ran after her too, staying within range in case it became necessary. An opponent stepped in to block her. Joshua ran to the side, making himself an obvious opening to the other team. Katie caught on quickly, feinting towards Joshua, faking out the opponent and instead going around the opposite side. She lined up her shot. The goalie hunched in preparation.

She kicked.

It flew.

The ball fell to the ground, deflated.

Joshua stared, uncertain what he was seeing at first. The ball lay flat on the ground, a large black object sticking out of it. He got closer, investigating the object. Katie joined, crouching down beside him.

"What is it?" one of the opposing team asked.

"Commander," Katie said, pointing out the shape of the object.

"I know," Joshua said. He bit his lip and carefully pulled the object loose. Just ass he feared, it was a long black knife shaped like a cross. Several troops gasped behind him.

"Commander," Katie said, gripping his shoulder.

Joshua looked up from the knife to see a black-clad soldier standing on top of the ridge lining the field. Another joined him, then another. Joshua squinted, praying his eyes were deceiving him, but there was no mistaking their distinctive garb.

"Black Cross," he said.

More and more appeared, at least a dozen, maybe more. His breathing became short and shallow.

"Everyone, get back," he ordered.

In the middle of the crowd, a tall figure appeared. Not a black-clad soldier like the others, but a man wearing an ornate golden mask, like one you might see in the theatre. In one hand, he held a scythe made of gold. Joshua recognized him from news reports on multipleBlack Cross terrorist attacks.

"Katie," Joshua whispered. "Start getting everyone back inside."

Katie nodded wordlessly.

The man in the golden mask stared down at them, his mask wearing a wide, permanent smile. Anger built in Joshua, memories surfacing in his mind. Memories of death and pain and destruction. He wanted nothing more than to run up there and strangle the man himself, but he had a squad to take care of. A squad of unprepared, unarmed soldiers.

The man raised his scythe, his masked face staring at Joshua. He couldn't see his eyes, but he felt as if he were staring right at him. He knew what was about to happen.

"Everyone, get ready to run," he warned.

He and his squad carefully started moving back, slowly, so as not to trigger the insurgents. The Golden Mask watched them for a second, seeming to enjoy drawing it out. He let his scythe dip forward. "Open fire!"

"Run, now!" Joshua shouted.

He and his squad turned and ran. The sound of gunfire filled their ears as bullets flew all around them. Several troops fell, among them the rival team's captain who was caught in the back and died instantly. Joshua's leadership instincts kicked in. He couldn't let his troops die.

He charged through the crowd, reaching the door to D Building and pulling it open.

"Come on, everyone inside!" he shouted.

The remaining troops filed inside, taken from sixteen down to nine. Katie joined him beside the door, as did Dayton. They helped get the troops through the door and into safety. As the last soldier got through the door, Joshua noticed something was off. The bullets had stopped. He looked back out to see that the Black Cross were marching across the field, ignoring Joshua and his squad.

"Make sure everyone stays inside," Joshua told Katie. "Raise the alarm."

Katie eyed him, studying his face. She nodded, deciding not to question him. "Will do, Captain."

Joshua ducked back outside, shutting the door behind him. The Black Cross soldiers had stopped halfway across the field. The man in the golden mask raised his scythe again. Joshua pressed himself against the wall, watching them. The Golden Mask raised his scythe. A few soldiers dropped, opening up large cases they'd been carrying. From inside, they pulled about four fully armed rocket launchers.

Alarms blared throughout the compound, Katie having completed her assignment and alerted the rest of EAGLE to the Black Cross's presence. Soon, their forces would be deployed and the Black Cross would be pushed back. Despite this, the insurgents seemed unperturbed. The Golden Mask pointed with his scythe and shouted, "Fire!"

Rockets blasted toward a nearby building, striking one after another, blowing one whole corner to smithereens. Joshua watched as a section of the building collapsed in on itself. His mind raced, remembering which building it was. C Building. The science building. Where his brother James worked.

More of the build caved in. Images flashed through Joshua's mind, the memory of his parents' mangled bodies, James's lying right beside them. Joshua forgot everything, throwing caution to the wind and launching himself from his hiding spot. Bullets flew after him.

Heart pounding, he reached the door, pulled it open and dived inside, slamming it closed behind him. Bullets pounded the door and wall around it, but nothing got through. Joshua currently stood inside a small lobby area of the science building, alarms blaring overhead and officials running back and forth.

Realizing he didn't actually know which part of the building James worked in, Joshua took a chance and ran in the direction of the damage, looking for clues that might point him in the right way. He stopped at a building map. The area that had been bombed was designated as some kind of storage area.

That didn't sound like the place where James would work, but he had to know for sure.. He followed the map's directions, and arrived at a heavy, secured door that had been blown open by the blast and nearly bent in two. Joshua jumped over the door and found himself in a maze of corridors that was definitely not storage.

"James!" he called out.

Another blast rocked the building. Joshua took off down one hall, checking each room. Most of them were small labs or personal offices, with unusual diagnostics and diagrams everywhere.

"James!"

He checked room after room, finally turning one last corner, wear a large, heavy door had been blasted open and was hanging at a tilt. Joshua ran to the door, pulling it open as best he could. He worked his way past it and into the room beyond.

He found himself in an enormous science lab unlike any he had ever seen. One whole side of the room had been blown apart. But what hadn't been hit was covered in all manner of monitors and consoles, and the whole room seemed to be situated around a table where some kind of strange suit had been in the process of being assembled. A number of scientists lay scattered around the room. He checked a few of them but couldn't find any who were still alive.

He stepped up to the half-finished suit, feeling a strange pull toward it. He shook his head, turning away. James was more important right now. "James!" he shouted.

In one corner of the room, he heard a faint cough.

"James!" he shouted, rushing toward the sound.

A body lay buried under a pile of rubble in one corner. Joshua brushed away the dirt and dust to find his brother lying underneath. His glasses were askew, and he was covered in bruises and scrapes, but he looked to be still alive. Joshua breathed a sigh of relief. He started pushing the rubble off of his brother, moving off the large pieces, unburying him and checking him over for any signs of fatal or serious wounds. Everything seemed fine.

Joshua breathed another sigh of relief. James would be okay, for now. They still had to get out of here.

He jostled his brother. "James, wake up!"

Nothing.

"James," he tried again.

Another bomb rocked the building.

"James."

Finally, James coughed. His eyes flew open, and he looked around in confusion. "Josh," he asked groggily. He tried to sit up, but groaned in pain. He coughed, spraying dust into the air. The coughs turned into a full hacking fit as he tried to clear his lungs. Joshua helped him up and patted him on the back.

Clearing his throat, James blinked through the dust, trying to make sense of everything. He looked up at the massive hole in the wall, then down to the bodies of his dead coworkers lying nearby.

"Oh," he said.

His whole frame sank with the realization of what was happening.

"What's going on?" James asked.

"We're under attack," Joshua said. "The Black Cross are here. They bombed this building."

James stared at his friends for a moment, processing Joshua's words. Then his eyes narrowed. "They bombed this building specifically?" he asked.

"Yeah," Joshua replied. "It seemed pretty targeted."

James's eyes darted momentarily toward the suit on the table. "I see," he said.

Joshua followed his gaze, squinting at the suit. What was it? He wondered.

He shook his head. That wasn't a priority right now. They had to get out of here.

He gripped his brother's shoulder. "You okay?" he asked.

James looked at his brother, his eyes wet. "Yeah," he said. "Let's get out of here."

Joshua wrapped his arm underneath his brother and hefted him up. James stumbled as he tried to put weight on his leg.

"Guess not," he said, wincing through the pain.

"Come on," Joshua said, "Lean on me."

James wrapped his arm around Joshua's shoulder. The pair limped out of the lab and around the destroyed door. Joshua glanced back at the strange suit behind them, still feeling the strange pull toward it.

"This way," James said, pointing to the right.

They ran through the corridors, James guiding them to the nearest exit. Every few steps or so, James would stumble. Joshua gripped him tightly, pullinging him up each time. It took a long time, but soon they came to the last turn.

"Just around here," James said. "The exit's right up ahead."

"Let's go," Joshua said.

They took the corner at a run. The best run they could manage anyway. There was the door, straight ahead. They barreled toward it. They barely made it a few feet before a number of black-clad individuals stepped out, blocking the door and filling up the corridor. The brothers pulled to a stop. They had just fallen into a trap.

The brothers looked at each other, both realizing that they had no options. They looked back. They could make a run for it, but they'd never get anywhere on James's bad leg.

The crowd of Black Cross parted. Emerging from behind them, the man in the golden mask appeared. Up close, his mask appeared to be made of pure gold. His flowing black robes seemed to be made of velvet, making Joshua think of theater curtains.

"It's an honor," the man said, bowing dramatically, "To finally meet the brilliant Doctor James Cage and his precious baby brother."

Joshua's eyes widened. He and James looked at each other. The Black Cross knew their names.

"What do you want?" James asked.

The man in the golden mask laughed good-naturedly. "My apologies," he said. "I must have gotten ahead of myself. You see, I am the Golden Mask, emissary of the Black Cross. I have come to collect the both of you for my master. I would very much appreciate it if you would come quietly."

Joshua's mind raced. They had come to collect them?

"What is that supposed to mean?" he said through gritted teeth.

"Oh, you'll see, Joshua," the Golden Mask said. "Our glorious leader, my master, has a special request for the both of you."

A request? From the Black Cross?

"You can tell your glorious leader to shove it," James sneered. "We'd rather die than ever do anything to help people like you."

The Golden Mask was silent for a moment, simply staring at them with his permanent smile. He sighed.

"That's a real shame," he said, gripping his scythe in his hands. "I didn't want to have to do this, but I suppose I have no choice."

He raised his scythe and pointed it at the brothers. His smiling mask beamed at them, pausing for dramatic effect. "Take them."

The horde of Black Cross shouted and whooped, rushing toward the brothers. James and Joshua turned and ran, hobbling as quickly as they could in the other direction. They barely made it two steps before James stumbled, his leg giving out beneath him. Joshua gripped his brother, trying to pull him back up. Too late, Black Cross soldiers swarmed around them, grabbing them and pulling them apart.

Joshua lost his grip on his brother, and he turned to see James being dragged away in the opposite direction. Anger pulsed through Joshua. He pulled his right arm free, punching the soldier holding his left. James fought back too, despite his bad leg. The brothers broke free and stood back to back, punching and kicking at their attackers. They just might have a chance, Joshua thought.

Right at that moment, another blast rocked the building, knocking both brothers off their feet. Joshua struggled to get back on his feet, but before he could, he felt a sharp pain on the back of his head and the whole world went black.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

The Cage Brothers

Several months earlier, on the outskirts of Silver City, a small, unmarked bus with tinted windows drove along an out-of-the-way dirt road toward a secret military base. Inside, the bus carried soldiers, scientists, and government officials from all different backgrounds and nationalities, each wearing the insignia of EAGLE. Among them were the Cage brothers, sitting together in the back.

"Wish we could get there already," Joshua said, trying to peer out the bus's tinted windows to no avail. He adjusted his dress uniform, trying his best to not scratch at the million itches it was causing.

James smiled at his brother, adjusting his glasses on his nose. "Ready for your new assignment?" he asked.

Joshua flashed his brother a cocky grin. "I'm always ready. Personally, I'm more worried about you."

A loud buzz filled the bus as the intercom kicked on. "Attention! We'll be arriving at Silver City base momentarily. Please prepare to disembark."

The passengers on the bus let out a collective sigh of relief and started moving about, pulling down their bags and getting ready. "About time," Joshua said, as he and James did the same. A few moments later, the bus pulled to a stop, and an official pulled the door open.

"Everyone out. Make sure you have everything that belongs to you."

James and Joshua followed the crowd down the aisle and out. Instead of the sunshine they had been hoping for, they found themselves in a closed-off parking garage, not a single view to the outside to be found.

"Secret bases," Joshua said, trying his best to smooth out his wrinkled uniform. "Gotta love them."

"You'll be outside soon enough," James said, slinging his bag over his shoulder.

Joshua did the same as they followed the crowd in through the nearby door, where a queue had already formed to get through the base's tight security check in.

"Ready for your assignment?" Joshua asked.

"Just like you. Always ready," James said.

Joshua let his bag drop to the ground, as it looked like the line wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. He elbowed his brother. "Hey, it's our first time working together at the same base."

"I know, right?" James said. "I just got used to the peace and quiet. I don't know how I'm going to get any work done now."

"Shut up," Joshua said, giving his brother a gentle slug on the arm. James stuck out his tongue. Joshua returned the gesture.

The line started moving. The brothers hefted their bags and moved forward. "So, what's this new assignment of yours, by the way?" Joshua asked.

James hesitated for a second, scratching the back of his head. "A scientific assignment. Some new technology or something. It's supposed to be top secret, I think."

"Ah. One of those 'fancy' assignments."

"Yeah, something like that." James chewed his lip and changed the subject. "What about you?"

"I'm supposed to take command of a new squad here."

"Nice."

The line finally made it to the door, and the brothers let themselves be checked over by security. They stepped through into a small, air-conditioned lobby and handed over their papers at the reception desk. The receptionist looked them over, stamped them, and then pulled out two files with their names on them.

"You'll be over in C Building, Dr. Cage," he told James. "And you'll be in D Building, Commander," he said, handing Joshua his own.

The brothers took their files and flipped them open, confirming what they already knew. Joshua looked up at James, who was studying his assignment details with a tight expression.

"What is it?" Joshua asked.

James looked up, closing the file and tucking it under his arm. "Just science stuff. Nothing big. I guess I'm off to C Building. You?"

"D Building," Joshua said.

"Guess I'll be seeing you around then."

"Guess so."

James held out his hand. Joshua took it and pulled him into a hug.

Five minutes later, Joshua had found his way out of the main building and was making his way across the compound, searching for D Building. The base seemed to be surrounded by a large fence and a circle of hills, meaning he couldn't see any outside landmarks anywhere. Enjoying being outside finally, he rounded a corner to see D Building just ahead. "There we are," he said. He headed inside and found his way to the meeting room his file had indicated. Two generals waited inside.

"Ah, you must be Captain Cage," pne said, stepping around the table to shake his hand. "I'm General Hunter. This is General Blake."

Joshua shook their hands. "It's nice to meet you both."

"We'll be your direct supervisors while you're here. Shall we get down to business?"

"Of course," Joshua said, taking the offered seat.

General Blake sorted through his papers. "Now, Commander Cage, you know why you're here?"

"Yes, sir. I'm supposed to take over leadership of a squad today."

"That's right. We'll be assigning you to B-Squad," he said, handing him a file. Joshua flipped it open, looking over the squad members' files. "They're a good group, if a little rowdy."

"Looks good," Joshua said, closing the file.

"Your record looks good," General Hunter said, flipping through another file. "You received quite the letter of recommendation from your last supervisor. I think you'll fit in quite well here. Do you think you can handle the position?"

"Yes, sir," he said. "It shouldn't be a problem."

"Very good. Let's go meet your squad then, shall we?"

They led Joshua out of the room and down a long hall to the other side of the building. "Your squad is on their p-day today," General Blake explained. "They might not be the most presentable when you meet them."

They reached the end of the hall and opened a door to the outside. The sounds of troops running back and forth and shouting met his ears, accompanied by a familiar sound. The sound of his favorite sport: soccer.

They stepped out onto a rough field where about fifteen soldiers were kicking around a soccer ball. General Hunter blew a whistle.

"Line up!" he shouted. "B-Squad, line up!"

The troops stopped their game mid match. One by one, they ran across the field, lining up and making themselves look as presentable as they could. Most were panting and covered in sweat. The last to arrive, the team's broad-chested goalie, stumbled on his way over, but rolled right back up and took his place at the front of the line, bumping into his comrades as he did so.

Joshua raised an eyebrow, looking over at General Hunter. "Owens," the general said. "He's new." The general cleared his throat and stepped forward. "B-Squad, this is your new squad leader, Captain Joshua Cage. Please give him the respect and dignity he deserves."

B-Squad saluted. "Sir, yes, sir!"

"We'll leave them to you."

"Thank you, General," Joshua said. He stepped up to Corporal Owens and looked him over, trying to ignore the grass stains all over his civvies.

"Corporal Dayton Owens, Sir!" the officer said, throwing up a hasty salute.

"Corporal Owens," he said before moving on. Standing beside Owens was a taller soldier with long black hair, who was doing a much better job of maintaining her professionalism.

"Lieutenant Katie Young, Sir," she said.

"Nice to meet you, Lieutenant Young," Joshua said.

After her was a bright-eyed, round-faced cadet named Doug Cummins. He stood beside a frizzy-haired, energetic fellow cadet named Harriet Nixon. Joshua walked slowly down the line, looking over each member of the squad. They seemed a good group, despite their current disheveled state. He walked back up to the front.

"It's nice to meet all of you," he said. "I hope we can learn to work well together in the coming months."

He eyed the lonely soccer ball still lying in the grass. "I see by your attire that you were enjoying your p-day. I suppose I should let you get back to it."

While this was happening, Joshua's brother crossed the base toward an entirely different building. In his arms, he clutched the file he had just been given and was trying not to think about the assignment detailed within. He hadn't been lying when he told his brother it was top secret. It was probably the biggest secret EAGLE had.

He turned a corner to find a bland, nondescript-looking building. From the outside, anyone who didn't know would never guess it housed one of the most advanced scientific laboratories in the world. James, on the other hand, knew exactly what was going on inside it.

He stepped inside the building, walking right past the reception desk and up to the building's map. One corner of the building was labeled simply as storage. He checked his notes to confirm and followed the map's directions until they led him to a heavy locked door. He checked around to make sure no one was watching, then tapped his badge to it.

Once inside, he found a complicated maze of hallways. He reached into his file, pulled out a map, and followed its instructions through several complicated twists and turns until he finally came to a small conference room. Opening the door, he found it empty, just as he'd expected. He stepped in and took a seat at the table.

A few minutes later, the door opened again. An older general with a bit of a bald spot stepped inside, closing the door behind him. His uniform was covered in more medals than James could count.

"Ah," he said, crossing the room to shake James's hand. "You must be Doctor Cage."

"I am, sir," James said.

"I've heard good things," the general said. "I'm General Kenpachi, chief supervising officer of the Ranger Project. Please, have a seat."

That was the first time James had heard the words 'Ranger Project' spoken aloud. He sat down across from the general. "Now," Kenpachi said, opening his files, "why don't we start by telling me how much you know about the Ranger Project."

"Not a lot, sir," James explained. "Mostly just rumors. Whispers. I had suspicions, but none were confirmed until I arrived here today."

"And what were those suspicions?"

"A secret EAGLE project, supposedly trying to develop a series of 'super suits.' Occasionally a scientist will be pulled from what project they were working on. It's become a sort of running joke that they got reassigned to said project."

"Is that all?"

"Yes, sir."

"And what do you think of the plan?"

James hesitated, looking over his file. "I doubt the feasibility of such an endeavor. But it would probably have a lot of potential if you could make the science work."

General Kenpachi chuckled, closing up his notes and getting to his feet. "In that case, why don't we go for a walk," he said. He gestured to the door. "After you."

The general lead James through the maze, leading him to a massive heavy door, sealed tightly with an intricate locking mechanism.

"Here we are," the general said. "I thought you might like to look at what we've done so far."

He tapped a keycard to the door, and the locking mechanism shifted and turned, a million tiny pieces moving into place. The door popped open, and General Kenpachi gestured for James to enter. James stepped inside, his eyes widening. The laboratory he had just entered was easily the most advanced lab he had ever seen, more advanced than he thought possible. Incredibly powerful supercomputers James had only ever heard of lines the walls, and a table in the center displayed detailed blueprints of possible designs.

"Welcome to Ranger Project Headquarters," the general said. "Starr, come over here."

A nearby scientist looked up from his work and flashed a lopsided smile. He headed over, adjusting his wavy, dark hair.

"My replacement's arrived, huh?" he said. He shook James's hand. "Welcome to Ranger Central. Anthony Starr."

"James Cage."

"Oh, I know," Starr said. "Kenpachi's brought you in to fix me."

"He's here to work alongside you," Kenpachi said. "Starr here's been our main engineering expert. He came up with the initial designs for the suit, but we haven't exactly been able to make them work."

"That's where you come in," Starr said. "Top brass decided a new set of eyes were just the ticket to figure out what was wrong. Hence, you're here to fix me."

He walked over to the table in the center, tapping it so that it brought up the blueprints for the suit the team had developed. "What do you think, Einstein?"

James stepped up to the table and looked over the blueprints. He tapped the diagrams, finding he was able to shift them around as he pleased. The diagrams showed off designs for an internal harness, designed to keep the wearer's muscles protected, despite the extra strain put on them. Preliminary designs for wiring threaded through special lightweight armor sat alongside concept designs for a helmet with a heads-up display and a permanent connection back to headquarters.

The designs still had a long way to go, but they already had James's mind racing. Just from a preliminary glance, he could see a few faulty elements that he was already developing an idea for how to resolve. This project was far more than the long shot he thought it was. This had the potential to be the deciding factor that EAGLE needed in their war with the Black Cross. "How far along are these designs?" he asked.

"Not far," General Kenpachi said. "We were hoping you would be able to help us smooth out the rough edges."

"What are your plans for these suits once they're completed?" he asked.

"We plan on producing no more than five at a time," General Kenpachi said. "Once the first prototypes are ready, we'll start evaluating potential candidates. Preferably soldiers with immaculate records and backgrounds."

James's ears perked up. A soldier with an immaculate record and background? James looked over the designs for the suit, imagining his brother inside them. They fit perfectly.

"So?" Anthony Starr asked, leaning against the table and looking over the blueprints proudly. "Are you in?"

James grinned. "I'm in."

A few hours later, Joshua stepped into the base's mess hall, hot and covered in sweat just like his squad. He had changed into his own civvies and played soccer with them most of the morning, using the opportunity to get a sense for their skills and personalities. Now, he was ready for lunch. The smell of warm food met his nose, and he crossed the room to pick up a tray. He licked his lips and looked over the base's offered choices.

Picking out a bowl of mac and cheese and a piece of cake for dessert, Joshua turned with his full tray and scanned the room for a place to sit. On the opposite end, he spotted James walking in with a few others in lab coats.

"James!" Joshua called.

James looked up and grinned. He navigated his way to the crowd to get to his brother. "Hey, bro," he said. "How'd your first day go?"

"Good. Soldiery stuff, you know. Yours?"

"No complaints." He eyed Joshua's tray. "Food any good?"

Joshua shrugged. "See and find out."

James smirked, patting his brother's shoulder. "Guess I better get some then."

He passed around Joshua and picked up his own tray. Joshua looked around and saw Katie Young and a few other members of his squad sitting together. He approached them.

"May I sit here?"

Katie looked up at him and grinned. She had been easily one of his toughest opponents out on the field. "Of course, Captain," she said.

Joshua took a seat across from her.

"Welcome to the base."

"Happy to be here," Joshua said. "Have you been serving here long?"

"About a year," she said. "Transferred over from the base out in Turtle Cove. Was hoping for your job, but you know." She gave him a sarcastic shrug. She was about to say more, but instead looked up and groaned. "Oh, geez. Dayton, again?"

Joshua turned around to see Dayton Owens approaching, three heaping bowls of rice and curry piled on his tray.

"Um, Corporal Owens," Joshua stuttered, his eyes wide. "Did you overload yourself there?"

"Nope," Dayton said, setting down and rubbing his hands together. He unwrapped a pair of chopsticks and dug in, wolfing down the curry like it was soup.

Joshua threw a concerned look at Katie, who was watching Owens with morbid fascination.

"That normal?"

Katie nodded, unable to pull her eyes away. "In a manner of speaking."

"Hey, bro," James said, approaching with a tray of food. "Thought I'd come sit." His eyes trailed to Dayton, who was about halfway through his first bowl. "Um, he okay?"

"Apparently," Joshua said. He gestured to an open seat.

James sat, accompanied by another scientist in a lab coat. "That's quite the meal you've got there," the second scientist said, staring at Dayton.

"Thank you," Owens said through a full mouth.

"Josh, this is Anthony Starr," James said, changing the subject. "He and I will be working together on the same project. Starr, this is my brother Josh. He's a soldier here."

"Brothers, huh?" Starr said. "Well that should make things interesting."

"These are some of my squad," Joshua said. "This is Katie Young, and the curry depository is Dayton Owens."

"How do you do?" Katie said, shaking James's hand.

Starr reached out to shake her hand as well when his wristwatch beeped. He looked at it in surprise. "Oh, right," he said. He collected up his tray. "Forgot I was supposed to call my mom when I got on lunch. Phone stays in the locker, you know the drill."

He held his tray up and hurried off through the crowd. Joshua looked back at James. "You and him are working on that top secret project you were talking about?"

James's eyes widened for a second. "Um, yeah," he said, scratching the back of his neck again. "Something like that. Good potatoes, aren't they?"

He took a quick bite. Joshua raised an eyebrow. His brother was clearly hiding something but he decided not to worry about it. Instead he turned to Katie, who was finishing up her sushi. "You said you came from Turtle Cove?" he asked.

Katie swallowed. "Yeah," she said. "Nice and tropical, but a little polluted for my taste."

Their conversation was cut off when Dayton set down his last bowl of curry. "Done!" he said proudly.

Both brothers stared in awe, while Katie just rolled her eyes.

"You ate all of that?" Joshua asked.

"Yep," Dayton said, patting his stomach. "Time for more."

He picked up his tray and headed back over to the lunch line. The brothers stared at each other for a moment before breaking into laughter.

"And I thought you could eat, Josh," James said.

"Not like that, for sure. I think I and the rest of my squad are going to have to ration the rest of our food when he's around."

"Already way ahead of you there, Captain," Katie said. "Owens has been here six months. We've already learned to eat around him."

"If you say so."

Joshua took a bite of his mac and cheese. He smiled at his brother. "I'm glad we'll be working together, bro," he said.

James smiled. "I'm glad we'll be working together too."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

The Black Cross Fuhrer

Several hours following the attack, James came to. He could see anything. He had a throbbing pain on the back of his head and his leg screamed with pain every time he moved it. He shook his head, trying to clear it, but everything felt fuzzy, distorted. Where was he? How did he get here? What was he doing before he got knocked out? Something to do with EAGLE.

He grit his teeth and shook his head, willing himself to wake up. His head cleared, and he felt a bit more awake. His head still throbbed but he tried not to think about it. He looked around, squinting, trying to make out anything around him. Everything was pitch black. Careful of his injured leg, he felt around with his feet. There were no walls around as far as he could tell, except for a solid object to his right.

He wiggled his fingers, feeling at the ropes that were keeping him pinned tightly to his chair. He strained at them, but there was no give. He squinted, hoping his eyes would adjust. Nothing. He switched to his ears, listening for any subtle noises. He heard a faint breathing nearby. He carefully reached out his foot and kicked gently at the object beside him. The soft breathing stopped with a snort. James pulled his foot back quickly.

"What's going on?" a groggy voice said.

A rush of relief ran through James. "Josh!" he said.

He heard Joshua groan. "James?"

"Yeah. I'm here."

Joshua was silent for a minute, probably trying to figure out what was going on. "Where are we?"

"I don't know," James said. "I think we've been taken hostage."

Memories started rising to the surface. Bombs rocking the building. Running from the Black Cross. The lab destroyed, and his friends lying dead all over the floor.

"Right," he said. "The Black Cross."

"Oh, yeah," Joshua said. "Man, they hit us hard. It feels like they left a lump the size of my fist back there."

James heard Joshua's feet sweeping around the floor, likely trying to feel around for anything nearby. He felt a soft kick as Joshua's feet found his legs.

"We're probably inside a Black Cross hideout then," he said.

James heard him start trying to rock around in his chair. "We need to find a way to get out of here."

Before he could make any headway, a door somewhere behind them opened, flooding the room with bright white light. James blinked, blinded by the sudden light. The room around them seemed massive, like a chapel with some kind of altar set up at the far end.

Hundreds of black-clad individuals swarmed into the room, filling up every square inch of the room. In the confusion, James had to really focus to pick out any distinct features. Black leather vests, metal frames around their eyes. Standard Black Cross soldiers. They filed into the room, at least three hundred or more, surrounding the brothers.

Mixed in among the regular soldiers were a number of individuals wearing specialized masks. They seemed to be the generals. To their right, a man was entirely clothed in classical samurai armor, wearing a Kabuki-style mask. Another was wearing a World War II-era gas mask, while still another was dressed up like a terracotta warrior. The brothers recognized most of them from news reports of Black Cross attacks around the world.

"What do you want with us?" James demanded as the crowd of soldiers stood silently, staring at them.

No answer.

"Nothing to say?" Joshua said. "My brother asked you a question. Why don't you take those stupid masks off and stop hiding, cowards?"

Still no answer. The Black Cross seemed to be waiting for something. Or someone.

"Hey, answer us," Joshua said, kicking out at the nearest soldier.

A cold, sinister laugh sounded from somewhere in the back corner of the room. A laugh the brothers recognized. "Defiant to the end as always, eh, Cage Brothers?"

"Who's there?" James said. "Show yourself."

"As you wish."

The crowd shuffled a bit, parting to clear a path. Standing against the back wall stood the man in the golden mask, smiling at them with his wide permanent smile. His mask gleamed as if it were new, not a single tarnish from his attack on their base. He swept his robes aside with a flourish and bowed dramatically. "Welcome," he said, "to the Black Cross."

He stepped forward, the crowd closing behind him. His smiling face stared blankly as he stood over them, gripping his scythe tightly. The brothers glared up at him.

"What an honor it is to finally welcome the pair of you to our humble headquarters." He reached out the tip of his scythe, brushing James's cheek with it. "The brilliant scientist, Doctor James Cage. And his brother, the daring, heroic soldier. The twin suns of EAGLE's forces. We've been watching you, both of you, for a while now."

James pulled his cheek away from the weapon. His comrades' bodies littering the floor filled his mind as he stared at that smiling face. "What do you want?" he asked with gritted teeth.

The Golden Mask cocked his head. "Oh, you'll see. Our fuhrer would like a word with you."

"Fuhrer?" Joshua cracked. "You guys are Nazis now?"

A murmur of anger rippled through the crowd. The Golden Mask turned to Joshua and smacked him across the face with the back of his hand. "I expect you both to show him proper respect when he arrives. Or else." He held his scythe up to Joshua's throat.

A door opened somewhere on the far side of the room. A few seconds later, a murmur of excitement passed through the crowd.

"The fuhrer," one said. "He's here."

"The fuhrer," another said excitedly.

"Silence," a soft, deep voice said, carrying over the whole crowd. The room fell silent. Every soldier and mask got down on one knee.

"Make way, my children," the soft voice said.

A wide aisle being formed in the crowd, creating an aisle leading from the brothers to the altar at the end of the room. A massive cross painted black stood on a pedestal. A man stepped out from the crowd and stood before the altar. He wore a pure white cloak that covered his entire body, with a hood pulled so low that it covered his entire face. A pair of bright lights shone through the cloth, about where his eyes would be.

The man spread his arms wide, his long sleeves covering his hands. "Brother James," he said in a gentle, soothing voice. "Brother Joshua. Welcome to the Black Cross. I am your fuhrer. I am pleased to have met both of you." He stepped forward, down the aisle. The Black Cross soldiers bowed to him as he passed, grasping at and kissing the hems of his sleeves.

He stepped up to the brothers, and the crowd once again closed behind him. The brothers stared up at him. Even up close, they couldn't see his face.

"I do hope my children weren't too rough with you," he said warmly. "You are my guests, after all."

Joshua snorted. "I'm sure," he said. "Nice getup by the way. Didn't know you guys were both Nazis and the KKK. Are you the KGB and Isis, too?"

Another wave of angry murmuring ran through the crowd. James clenched his teeth, waiting for the strike, but the fuhrer simply held up his hand, silencing the angry crowd.

"You are the one they call Doctor James Cage, correct?" he asked, ignoring Joshua.

James looked up at him, nodding cautiously. "That's correct," he said.

The fuhrer gestured with his long sleeve, and a soldier rushed forward with a file. The fuhrer opened it and skimmed through it. "I see you graduated with high marks from Harvard, after which you joined EAGLE, where you have served faithfully for five years."

He flipped the page over. "And this is your brother, Captain Joshua Cage, who joined EAGLE the same time that you did."

The fuhrer flipped over another page. "Oh," he said. "That's interesting. I see your parents passed just before you joined." He looked closer at the details on the page. "In one of our attacks. Really?" He looked over at them, seeming almost sympathetic. He brushed the file away.

He turned to face the brothers, bending down to look them in the eyes despite the hood. "I understand why you both hate us," he said. "Really I do. If I could have spared your parents from harm, I would have. But our goals are much greater than the lives of two civilians. I hope someday you can understand that and find it in you to forgive us."

James almost scoffed at the idea, but he held his tongue.

The fuhrer held his arm out and was presented with another file. He opened it and pulled out a small image of a set of blueprints. "Recognize this?" he asked, holding it up.

James's eyes widened. He was staring at some of the plans for the ranger project.

"Ah, yes," the fuhrer said, flipping over the image and looking it over. "Your super-secret project to bring us down. Imagine my delight when my spies first informed me of it. These elegant, breathtaking super suits you were planning to build." The fuhrer sounded almost hungry, desperate even, talking about them. "Can you imagine what I could do with suits like that? Can you imagine what I could do with a hundred?"

"What do you want?" James said, keeping his tone firm.

"Isn't it obvious?" the fuhrer said. He leaned in close to James. Too close."I want a super suit, Dr. Cage. I want a hundred super suits. I want an army of godlike soldiers to do my bidding." He gripped James's shoulder with his long sleeve. "My sources tell me that you were among the brightest minds working on the project. I want you to be the one who makes them for me."

He stood and held out his arm to James. "Together, we could do great things, Dr. Cage. We could change the world. What do you say?"

James stared at the fuhrer in disgust. The sheer gall, the audacity, this man had to think that he could ever convince him to create a super suit for them. He built up a wad of saliva in his mouth and spit on the fuhrer's cloak, right where his face should be.

A collective gasp ran through the room.

"If you think I would ever construct _anything_ for someone like you, much less a super suit, you can take your little offer and shove it."

The crowd of Black Cross muttered angrily. James heard several demands to have him executed immediately.

The fuhrer simply stared at him, silent and collected. He reached up with his sleeve and wiped off the spittle. He held a hand up to silence the crowd. "If that is your choice, Dr. Cage," he said, wiping his sleeve on his robe. He turned to the Golden Mask standing nearby. "Kill the brother," he said.

"What?" James shouted.

The fuhrer turned back to face James, the lights behind his hood fixing him with a cold stare. "Take your time."

The Golden Mask gripped his scythe. He raised it and pointed at Joshua. A horde of Black Cross soldiers rushed forward, swarming him. Joshua tried to fight back, but he soon found himself knocked to the floor, his face smashed hard against the cement. The Black Cross punched and kicked and beat him with their weapons. James pushed against his bindings, straining to do anything. He heard Joshua crying out in pain.

"Enough," the Golden Mask shouted.

As one, the horde backed off, leaving Joshua beaten and bloody on the floor. The Golden Mask kneeled beside him, grabbing him by the back of his hair and pulling his head up to look at James. He slipped his scythe under Joshua's throat.

Joshua's swollen eyes opened slightly, meeting James's. James pushed against his ropes desperately.

"Make your choice, Dr. Cage," the Golden Mask said, his smiling face seeming one of pure glee. "You can make the suit or he dies. Is your hatred of us really worth the life of your precious baby brother?" He tightened the scythe against Joshua's throat.

James didn't know what to do. He couldn't give the Black Cross what they wanted, but he couldn't let Joshua die either. He looked at Joshua, searching for any kind of answer. Joshua shook his head, his eyes filled with resolve. He was willing to die.

James wasn't willing to let him.

"Time's up, Doctor Cage," the Golden Mask said.

He tightened the blade, digging it into Joshua's skin until he drew blood. Joshua closed his eyes.

"Do it," the fuhrer said.

"Stop!" James shouted.

The fuhrer raised his arm. The Golden Mask paused. "I'll do it," James said, hanging his head. "I'll do it."

The fuhrer chuckled. James felt his robed hand grasping his shoulder. "Good," he said. "Very good. I'm so glad we could come to an agreement." He held up his other hand to the Golden Mask. "Release him," he said. "He's no good to us dead."

The Golden Mask sounded disappointed. "As you wish, my master." He removed his scythe and pushed Joshua's head against the ground.

"Untie them both," the fuhrer ordered.

The man in the samurai armor and a few grunts encircled James, shoving him around roughly as they untied his bonds. The Golden Mask untied Joshua's. James felt the bands loosen. He felt his chair tip over, and he slammed facefirst into the cement floor.

"That's what disrespect gets you," the Samurai Mask said.

James groaned in pain. He turned his head to the side to look at his brother. Joshua's face was covered in blood and bruises, but he was alive.

Rough hands grabbed James and pulled him up off the floor, forcing him to his feet. His bad ankle twinged as he put weight on it. Several Black Cross members spit on him. James closed his eyes and endured it. Joshua was pulled to his feet beside him, and the brothers were pushed up against each other as they were jostled around by their captors.

"Now that we're all of one accord," the fuhrer said. "Please show our guests where they'll be working."

"Hail, Fuhrer!" the crowd shouted as one, beating their fists against their left shoulders. James and Joshua were pushed and shoved through the crowd, out of the room, through a heavy door, and into a hallway. The Black Cross at their backs pushed them forward, ordering them to move. The brothers walked as best they could, jostled left and right by their captors.

"I'm sorry," James mouthed quietly to his brother.

Joshua shook his head, the same look of resolve on his face. "Don't be."

As they were led through the compound, something was nagging at the back of his brain. The information the fuhrer had was far too in depth about the Ranger Project. All Project-related information had been safeguarded closely with intense security measures. That meant there had to be a spy within the Ranger Project itself. But who?

He thought about all his friends killed in the attack. They'd been betrayed, murdered even, by someone they thought of as a friend. Anger rose within him. He had to figure out who, if only for their sakes.

The brothers were dragged around several corners until finally they came to a pair of heavily reinforced steel doors. "Welcome, Gentlemen," the Golden Mask said, stepping up and inserting a key into the doors' lock, "to your new home."

He opened the door, and the brothers were shoved inside.

James looked around, his mouth open. They were standing in a rough laboratory nowhere near as nice as the Ranger Project lab back at the base, but still fairly advanced. In the center, a large table was covered in all kinds of scrap metal and fabric, mostly of the type that he had been using to build the suits. Along one wall, a supercomputer was booted up, displaying an incomplete, outdated copy of the ranger suit blueprints, probably pulled from a few weeks before. All more evidence of a spy.

The Golden Mask strutted into the lab, spreading his arms so they could take it all in. "What do you think, Cage brothers?" He asked. He gestured to one seat. "Baby Joshua will be working here." He strode around to the other. "And Doctor James, you will be working here. That way you can have access to the computer."

He stepped around the table and got up close and personal with James, close enough he could almost make out the real person's eyes beneath the mask. "You know how to build the suit, don't you, Dr. Cage?" he said.

James nodded.

"I know you do." the Golden Mask tilted his head. "I suggest you get started immediately."

He gestured to his soldiers, who grabbed the Cage brothers and forced them violently into their seats.

"Oh, and I would suggest not trying anything," the Golden Mask said, gesturing to a series of cameras located around the room. "I'll be watching."

With a flourish of his robes, he swept from the room. "I want two guards on them at all times. No exceptions."

The doors slammed shut behind him.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

The Ranger Project

Over the next several days, the Cage brothers set to work. Every day, they would be locked in their lab with whatever tools they needed, with two guards standing on opposite sides of the room at all times. James would use the blueprints and his own knowledge of the project to put the suit together, while Joshua helped out with most of the heavy lifting and grunt work.

"Find as many of these metal pieces as you can," James told Joshua on their first day. "Follow the pattern on page two on the blueprints. They should form a rudimentary frame."

"Got it," Joshua replied.

Working side by side, the brothers started putting together the harness that would protect and brace the muscles against serious damage while inside the suit. James could tell Joshua had a lot of questions, but he wasn't asking them just yet. With their guards watching them closely and the Golden Mask likely on the opposite end of those cameras, they had to watch their steps for now.

At the end of each day, the brothers were pulled up from their table, dropping whatever they were doing, and would be taken in separate directions to be locked up in tiny cells with no windows, a small cot to sleep on, and a bucket in the corner. Conditions were pretty miserable. The cells were small and cramped, and the bucket stank. They were only fed twice a day, and both meals tended to be dismal at best. They didn't get much sleep either. They would be locked up in their cells for only eight hours at a time and had to work constantly the rest of the time.

Tired, hungry, and running on fumes, the brothers pressed on, refusing to give in. They worked hard, bringing the suit together. They found that their guards tended to be lenient when it came to conversation so long as they didn't discuss anything even sounding like an escape attempt. This was probably because they hoped the brothers might leak sensitive information by mistake.

One day, they were working on assembling what the Ranger Project had dubbed Birdie Rockets. While James was busy writing the programing for the rockets, he couldn't help but notice his brother staring at the tiny devices with an increasingly doubtful expression. "These things are really supposed to make you fly?" he finally asked.

"Yep," James said. He smiled for the first time in what felt like ages. He was used to this question.

"And they're attached at the belt level?"

"Yes, sir."

"Wouldn't that make the flier top-heavy?"

There it was. "Not exactly," he said. He pointed to some of the harness's connectors. "See how it's attached there? The harness redistributes the weight to keep you balanced."

"Uh-huh," Joshua said. He was clearly not convinced, but he decided to drop it. He glanced at the guards and the cameras and leaned forward. "So, this Ranger Project the fuhrer was talking about? This whole super suit thing we're building?"

James looked up at his brother. He scratched the back of his head, not sure what to say. He supposed there wasn't much point to hiding anything from Joshua now. The Black Cross apparently already knew almost everything important.

"Alright," he said. He gathered his thoughts, trying to find the right words to say. "The Ranger Project is a secret project started by EAGLE about two years ago. The goal was to create a super suit that would enhance the wearer's abilities tenfold. Ten times the strength, ten times the speed, so on. I was one of the top scientists working on the project."

Joshua raised an eyebrow. "You've been working on this for two years?"

"Not exactly. I was brought on to the project six months ago."

Joshua did the math in his head. "Six months," he said. "When we both started at Silver City base."

"That's right," James said. "The project team brought me in because they'd hit a stumbling block and wanted fresh eyes for the project. With my record, I was a prime candidate."

Joshua snorted. "You don't need to tell me that one, Egghead," he said. He winked at his brother. James smiled back. "So this was your big top-secret assignment you couldn't tell me about," he said.

"Pretty much."

"All those six months, all those times we had lunch together, you were working on this?"

"That's correct," James said.

Joshua messed a bit with the birdie, fiddling with the connectors. "Did you know about the project beforehand?"

James finished up with his next line of code and smirked. "Technically, not much," he said.

"What does that mean?"

"Well, rumors and gossip tend to run rampant in the EAGLE science community. We _had_ heard rumors about a super soldier project, but those rumors were mixed in with other rumors about fifty-foot human-shaped robots and the government using alien technology. We never really took any of them too seriously."

Joshua started attaching parts of the Birdie Rocket to the harness where Joshua had shown him. "If these things work the way you guys plan them to," he said. "That's a really powerful army you'd have on your hands. A bit too powerful if you ask me."

James nodded. "We know," he said. "We had discussed the danger several times. That's why we decided to put a limit on the number of suits. We planned to keep each line of suits to a team of five max. A tight-knit group of approved and reliable soldiers with impeccable backgrounds that EAGLE could keep a close eye on. Each candidate had to have their name submitted to and evaluated by a committee before being brought in, and once selected, they would have to go through rigorous training. We were just about to finish up the first suit when—"

"When the Black Cross attacked."

"That's right."

Joshua was quiet for a while. He looked over the piece he was working on attaching and reattaching the pieces he knew how to work with.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you," James said. "I wanted to, every single day."

Joshua shrugged. "I get it," he said. "This was a big secret."

James nodded. "It was."

"A secret we definitely wouldn't want the Black Cross to get their hands on." He rolled his eyes in the guards' general direction.

James gave him a dry smile. "Yep, we definitely wouldn't want that."

Their guards didn't react.

James leaned in. "You should know, though," he said. This was pushing the edge of what the Black Cross already knew, but he felt he should say it anyway. "About three weeks ago, I approached my commanding officer and submitted your name for consideration. He agreed and we put in a request to the committee for evaluation.."

Joshua looked up at him in surprise. "Really?"

James nodded. "You were my only choice."

Joshua didn't say anything for a minute. He looked over the pieces in front of him with a new appreciation. "Three weeks ago, you said?" he asked.

"Yeah," James said. "We were just waiting on a response. We expected it to come back any day. And then—," he trailed off. He didn't have to finish.

James fell silent, looking over the fragments of the suit before him. "It should have worked," he said. He picked up a piece and turned it over in his hands.

"It sounds like it was quite the project," Joshua said.

James smiled sadly. "It was," he said.

Joshua scowled at their guards. He fiddled with the piece in his hands and put it down. "We need to get out of here," he said.

At those words, the guards tighten their grips on their weapons.

"Shush," James said.

"I'm serious," Joshua said. "We can't let them have this suit." He gestured to the birdie rockets he had just installed. "Look at this. You know what it can do. If we let them get their hands on it, we are basically handing the world a death sentence."

"I know," James said. The guard's fingers were starting to itch toward their triggers. Joshua had said too much. "You're right," he said. " But there's nothing we can do about it. It would be pointless to even try, so don't even talk about it."

Joshua opened his mouth to argue, but James looked him dead in the eye. Closing his mouth, he nodded slowly. "Right," he scowled. "Sorry. It was a stupid thing to say."

"Let's just keep working," James said

"Yeah."

The brothers worked in silence. Their next task was to hook up the harness and the birdies to the computer so that James could apply his programming. While he worked, he considered their predicament. If they wanted to escape, they would need a code of some kind. He had an idea.

"Okay, I'm going to need your help," he said. He leaned forward and pointed to a series of lights on the harness that would be lighting up while he coded. "Pay attention to these lights here. Specifically, one, three, five, and seven. Got it?"

Joshua searched James's face, trying to pick up on what he was trying to tell him.

"One, three, five, and seven," James repeated. "Keep watching those lights. Okay?"

Joshua nodded slowly.

"Let's just not talk about escape," he said. "Don't get in to trouble. Just watch these while I code."

Hidden in those words were James's coded message. "Let's . . . talk . . . in . . . code." One word in, then three more words, then five after, then seven more.

He watched Joshua's face for any sign he had picked up on the code. Joshua stared back at him, confused at first. Then he subtly nodded. "What ever," he said. "This is our life now. Make your stupid suit and stick to their plan."

James did the math in his head. "What . . . is . . . your . . . plan?"

He'd got it.

"First," James said carefully, showing Joshua the appropriate cord. "I must test the system connection. If the lights don't flash, it's a bad code."

"First . . . test . . . the . . . code."

Joshua nodded, thinking. He got down low, squinting at the lights to track their movement.

"Let's see," he said. He rubbed his head and groaned. "I'd kill for a soda. Ask the guards if we can have some. Guards!" He turned to look at the guards.

The guards didn't respond to his coded threat. "No drinks," they said. "Keep working."

Joshua did so. He stared at the lights for a minute. "Change your code," he said. "The lights aren't flashing; your code is faulty. Write a better one tomorrow."

James nodded. "Change . . . the . . . code . . . tomorrow." That was a good plan. "I'll do that," he said. "Figure out what's wrong with it on your end. I'll work it out from here."

While they worked, on the other side of the cameras watching them, the Golden Mask sat in a small control booth surrounded by Black Cross soldiers. He leaned forward, gripping his scythe. Something was off about their conversation. It sounded stilted. They had to be talking in code, but he wasn't picking up on it.

"Play back the recording," he ordered one of his soldiers.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

The Escape

Over the next two weeks, the Cage brothers stuck to their task of putting together the suit, keeping their heads down and not drawing attention to themselves. Speaking in codes that they changed up every day, they carefully planned out their escape. The suit started coming together, the brothers finishing up the harness, helmet, and armor. It started looking more like a suit than a pile of random scraps.

Finally, they were ready.

"Alright," James said, patting the small bench they had been using. "Sit up here and let me get this harness on you."

Joshua grumbled as he normally did. They had started using Joshua as a test dummy for the suit's parts and pieces, having him try them on and make sure they were working properly. The guards had raised some concern initially, but after James told them there was a chance of the suit malfunctioning and crushing their bones, they decided they'd rather Joshua did the job instead of one of them.

James worked steadily, treating it as if it were no different than any previous time, fastening each bolt and cinching the harness up so that it fit tightly around his brother. "How does that feel?" he asked, having Joshua move his arm around. "How are they moving? Do you think they're about ready?"

Joshua wiggled around, not responding to James's coded message of "Are you ready?"

"Feels good," he said. "Just wondering how to get out to go to the bathroom."

"Good to go," was his coded message. James nodded. "I'll let you know if it becomes a problem. Begin testing."

Joshua stretched and moved around inside the suit like he normally did. James started flipping switches on the harness, following his standard procedures. He slipped his hand under the harness, where he'd installed a hidden switch. He flipped it, setting off an electromagnetic pulse and taking out the cameras, lights, computer, everything.

They were in the dark.

"What was that?" the guards said, stepping forward and priming their guns. "What did you do?"

"Sorry, sorry," James said, standing back with his hands up. "Just a mistake in the programming. Just let me . . . Now!"

He dived down behind the table as Joshua jumped to his feet. He grabbed the gun of the nearest guard and twisted until he dropped it. He punched the guard in the chest, a surprising amount of force throwing the guard across the room.

"Whoa," Joshua said, staring at his own fist.

The other guard stared, stunned. Joshua took the opportunity and leaped across the room with incredible speed and tackled the guard. He wrenched the guard's gun from his hand, bending it out of shape in the process. James couldn't help but smile seeing his handiwork performing so well.

Both guards down, James rolled out from his hiding place. "Let's jam this door. Others are probably on the way."

He and Joshua pushed the table up against the door and jammed it tightly.

"Come on," James said. "We only have a few minutes. Let me get the rest of the suit on."

"Yes, sir," Joshua said, sitting back down on the bench. James gathered up all the pieces of the suit, and kicked the computer back on. He had thought ahead and insulated it ahead of time against the EMP.

He pulled up his programming and got it ready to download. Joshua slipped his arms into the suit's coat and fastened it to the harness. He slipped the trousers on and got them attached as well. Once the program was ready, James pulled out two connector cords and plugged them in. He tapped on the keyboard to get the program downloading before helping Joshua with his gloves and boots.

Finally, all they had left was the helmet. The brothers worked together to squeeze it down over Joshua's head. It was a bit of a tight fit, but not too bad. Once it was on, they only had to wait for the program to finish downloading. While they waited, James plugged in the virus he had written disguised as coding to wipe the Black Cross's system of all records and blueprints involving the Ranger Program and super suit.

"How's your helmet's visor working?" he asked. "There should be a heads-up display coming on."

Joshua nodded. "Yeah, I'm seeing it," he said, his voice a little muffled.

Several heavy thuds started pounding on the door, making both brothers jump. James bit started typing faster. The program was only about seventy-five percent done.

The pounding at the door stopped, shortly followed by a larger bang that left a slight dent in the door. A battering ram. Another bang and the dent got bigger. James tapped his leg, wishing the computer would move faster.

Another bang, followed by a metallic crunch. The door crumpled in like paper. Ninety percent, ninety-two percent, ninety-five percent. Almost there. Come on.

Another bang and the door flew open, the table skidding to the side. A horde of Black Cross soldiers swarmed into the room, guns pointed at the brothers.

"Back against the wall!" they shouted.

James stepped back, hands in the air. The computer reached one hundred percent.

Joshua launched himself from the table, tackling the nearest group of soldiers as the room erupted into chaos. James dove behind the table, grabbing the gun one of their guards had dropped. Joshua grabbed one soldier and threw him into the next, sending them both sprawling. A spray of bullets rang out across the room as several soldiers opened fire on Joshua. Joshua stood there and took it, the bullets ricocheting off the suit's armor, not even causing a single scratch of damage. Finally, the bullets stopped.

"Nice try," Joshua said. He leaped back into the fray, taking down one enemy after another. James helped him out, sniping soldiers from behind the table.

The ranger suit was a sight to behold. Inside it, Joshua fought through the crowd with quick, fluid movements, taking them down like they were nothing. With every punch, he could hear bones cracking. He almost had to hold back to avoid doing serious damage. His speed was intense too. With every step, he covered more distance than he could have ever expected, and his jumps carried him several feet into the air.

The soldiers rushed him as a group, hoping to overwhelm him with sheer numbers. With a mighty shove, he threw them all into the air and back on top of each other. Everything they tried against him failed. Joshua punched and kicked his way through their ranks until there were only two left. They looked at each other and tried to rush him at the same time. Joshua merely grabbed them both and knocked their heads together.

The battle was over.

Joshua stood in the middle of a heap of bodies, staring around at what he had done with his own hands. James stepped out from behind the table.

"How did I do," Joshua asked, putting up his visor.

"Awesome," James said, looking him over. "Are you okay?"

Joshua shrugged. "Yeah, pretty much. Let's get out of here."

They stepped over the unconscious soldiers and up to the door. "Stay behind me," Joshua said. "Keep the gun ready."

"Got it," James said, tucking up behind his brother.

Joshua stepped out carefully into the corridor. Everything was dark and quiet for now. "Come on," he said.

They hugged the opposite wall, keeping it to their backs at all times. They approached the far corner, Joshua peeking around. He spotted some movement up ahead.

"Stay back," he said. "Cover me."

"Got it," James said. Joshua stepped out as a squad of about twelve soldiers came into view.

"Looking for me," he said.

"Freeze," their leader shouted.

"Yeah, I don't think so." Joshua charged, barreling into them at blinding speed. Several bullets pecked his armor, but he ignored them and kept going, throwing and punching and flipping them over like rag dolls. In seconds, every last one lay scattered on the floor.

"Not too shabby," he said.

James stepped out from behind the wall. "Don't get cocky, little bro," he said. "We're not out of the woods yet."

A faint sliding sound met their ears. James looked over his brother's shoulder to see a wall open up, revealing a shadowy figure standing behind a secret door. His brain kicked into instinct mode and he shoved Joshua out of the way.

"Look out!"

A rocket shot from the secret passage, flying past Joshua and striking the wall behind James, exploding in a fiery blast

"No!" Joshua said. The force of the blast had been enough to destroy the wall and cause the ceiling to cave in. James was nowhere to be seen.

"James!" Joshua shouted.

A cold, cruel laugh broke through the dusty air. "You know, for as smart as he was, James Cage really could be quite stupid sometimes." The figure stepped out of the shadows, revealing a smiling golden mask. He held a rocket launcher in his hand, pointed right at Joshua's chest. "Well, look at that," he said. "Our very first fully functioning Power Ranger."

Joshua fumed, clenching his powerful fists.

"Truly a marvel, isn't it?" the Golden Mask said, looking over the suit. "James Cage should be proud of the work he's accomplished. Let's see how it holds up against some real firepower."

He fired. Another rocket burst from the weapon and headed straight for him. His visor lit up, showing him the rocket's speed and trajectory, indicating the best option for dodging the attack. Joshua sidestepped the rocket and it blazed right past him. He turned to face the Golden Mask, rushing toward him, grabbing the rocket launcher, and pulling it from his hands. He balled up his fist with all the strength he could muster and punched him in the gut so hard he was sure something had burst. The Golden Mask flew through the air, hitting the concrete wall behind him so hard he left a small crater. He slumped to the floor and didn't get up again.

"James!" Joshua said. He ran back to the other end of the hall and started shifting rubble around, uncovering his brother. Severe burns and gaping wounds covered most of James's body, his face a mangled mess. Blood pooled around him and his glasses lay shattered nearby. He coughed and spat up more blood. Joshua had seen enough battlefield wounds in his time to know when a situation was beyond help. He knew it was too late, but he wouldn't accept it.

"Come on, James," he said, "We've got to get you out of here."

He tried to move his brother, but everything he tried caused James to cry out in horrible pain. "Stop," James said. He grasped his brother's shoulder. "Stop. It's no use."

"No," Joshua said. Tears filled his eyes. "We've got to get you out of here. Please, James."

"No," James said. His voice was weak. "You have got to get out of here. You need to escape and get this suit back to EAGLE. You need to become the ranger you were always meant to be."

"Not without you," Joshua said. "This was your project."

"Not anymore," James said. "Get back to the base. Find General Edgar Kenpachi. He will help you. Become a ranger and bring these guys down once and for all."

Tears streamed from Joshua's eyes. He popped his visor open. "Please don't leave me, James. I can't do this without you."

James grasped his brother's hand and smiled. "I love you, Josh."

His hand went limp in Joshua's grip. He let out one last ragged breath and he was gone.

Joshua stared at his brother. He carefully reached out a hand and shook his shoulder. "James," he said. "James!"

He grasped his brother's body with both hands, shaking him with everything he had.

"Please, James," he pleaded.

James didn't respond.

Joshua slumped back against the ground. He stared at his brother's body, his mind numb. The sound of more Black Cross soldiers coming met his ears. Another squad appeared around the corner.

"There he is," one of them shouted. "Get him!"

The soldiers charged. Joshua stared at them blankly, only one thought filling his mind. His brother was dead. His family was dead. And it was all their fault.

He let out a cry of rage and charged his opponents head on. He ripped and tore through them, hardly paying attention to anything he was doing. He didn't care. He just wanted to make them pay. The soldiers tried to fight back, but it was a futile effort. Eventually, most started running.

"Get back here," he said, his vision turning red. He chased them down, bashing the slowest's head against the wall before moving on to the next. He kept up his chase through the compound, tearing through every soldier he could find until he stumbled past a door through which a beam of sunshine drifted through a small square window. He stopped in his tracks, the sight triggering something in his mind.

He turned to stare at the door, hardly daring to believe what he was seeing. He hadn't seen real sunshine in so long. He reached out a tentative hand and pushed it open.

He stepped through the door, stepping out into a small nondescript parking lot surrounded by warehouses. He took off his helmet, feeling cool, fresh air on his skin for the first time in several weeks. The air and sunshine cleared his head and brought him back to his senses. Escape, he thought. That's right. He had to escape. He looked back at the door behind him, hearing the sounds of more soldiers approaching. He took a deep breath and clicked on the Birdie Rockets at his belt. They fired up, and he took off into the sky.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

General Kenpachi

Joshua flew through the air, high over Silver City. The Black Cross compound had apparently been somewhere in the middle of the warehouse district, a detail he'd have to remember for later. But at the moment, his Birdies were starting to putter and give out. They hadn't exactly been made to last longer than the escape, so Joshua pointed himself toward the nearest EAGLE checkpoint he could remember and worked his way toward the ground.

His birdies gave out just as he was about to land, meaning he dropped the last couple of feet onto the pavement below, his suit absorbing the impact. Several passersby stared and whispered at him. He imagined he looked quite strange in this suit, possibly even like a Black Cross Mask. He ducked into the nearby alleyway, away from watchful eyes, and stripped off the suit. He stashed it behind a nearby dumpster, hopefully making it clear to any watching EAGLE cameras where it was.

Joshua straightened his worn and tattered civvies and stepped back onto the street. He stood in front of a small neighborhood snack shop, a sign reading "GON" over the door. He pushed the door open and stepped inside.

The shop was nothing special, just your average local lunch spot. A long bar stretched the length of the restaurant, lined with stools. A few tables filled the rest of the space, a few patrons on their lunch breaks seated around them, eating sandwiches and sushi and other lunchtime favorites. A cushioned bench lined one wall. All in all, it was a perfectly normal restaurant, seemingly untouched by the war with the Black Cross. Joshua knew better.

Joshua let out a sigh of relief to finally see a sight this normal again. He only wished James could have been here too. A shot of pain pulsed through his heart. Pushing down his feelings for now, he stepped up to the counter and sat down.

A man appeared behind the counter, older and balding, with heavy bags under his eyes, scrubbing a glass with a rag. "Good morning," he said. He stepped up to the counter and put the glass aside. "Welcome to Gon. What can I get for you today?"

Joshua picked up the nearby menu and looked it over, searching for the code items that would let them know he was with EAGLE. "I will have," he said, doing his best to sound natural, "three extra large bowls of curry, a cup of coffee, and a bowl of ice cream."

The man behind the counter looked up, meeting his eyes. Just as Joshua suspected, he was an EAGLE plant. "Are you sure?" the man said. "Our extra large bowls are a bit bigger than you think they are. Perhaps our medium size?"

Joshua shook his head, maintaining eye contact. "I can handle it," he said.

The man nodded gravely, marking his notepad. "Very well. Coming right up, sir."

"Thank you."

The man headed back into the kitchen, where Joshua could hear him clinking dishes and moving around. Joshua looked around to see that some of the other patrons were giving him funny looks because of his order, but most were enjoying their own meals and minding their own business.

After a few minutes, the man reappeared, carrying a tray with Joshua's order. Their extra large bowls were indeed a lot bigger than he had been expecting. Joshua almost cracked a smile, thinking of Dayton and wondering if he would have any trouble finishing it. Then he wondered if he was even still alive.

"Here you are," the man said. "Three extra large bowls of curry, a bowl of ice cream, and a cup of coffee."

"Thank you," Joshua said.

"Enjoy your meal."

Joshua picked up a pair of chopsticks and dug in. He didn't realize until the food hit his stomach just how hungry he had been. After three to four weeks of the bare minimum of nourishment, this bowl of curry tasted like heaven. He shoveled the rice into his mouth, not even bothered by the spice, and blazed through the first bowl like it was nothing. He finished up his first bowl and set it aside, moving on to the bowl of ice cream for a change of pace.

Slowly but surely, the other patrons finished up their meals and headed back out to their jobs, leaving Joshua and the man behind the counter alone. Joshua almost finished the second bowl before he felt ready to pop.

After the last patron left, the man behind the counter stepped out and looked around, checking to make sure they were alone. "This way," he said, gesturing to Joshua. He led him to the back of the restaurant, where a single door led to a small bathroom. The man checked inside before pulling out a badge and tapping the door. A loud rumbling sound filled Joshua's ears as the bathroom moved to one side.

After the rumbling stopped, the man opened the door again, revealing a long hallway leading to an elevator at the very end. The man handed Joshua another badge. "Take this," he said. "Use it to access the elevator at the end and take it down. You'll receive further instructions from there."

"Thank you," Joshua said, accepting the badge. He leaned in close. "There's a package behind the dumpster in the alley out back," he said.

The man nodded. "We'll get it," he said. "Head in."

Joshua stepped into the hall and the man closed the door behind him. Once Joshua had gone a few steps, the restroom moved back into place, blocking the door. Joshua crossed the length of the hall and tapped the badge to the elevator. A few seconds later, it dinged and Joshua stepped inside. The elevator descended slowly, traveling deeper and deeper underground. Joshua leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes, the elevator taking a long time to reach the bottom. It sure was deep, he thought.

At last, the elevator came to a stop. Joshua stepped out to find himself in a small reception area leading to a heavy security gate. He stepped up to the receptionist's desk, giving her his name and serial number. "Alright," she said. "Welcome back, Captain Cage. You can head through security right here."

"Thank you."

Joshua stepped through the security gate and let himself get checked out by the security officers. "You're good to go," they said after several minutes of scanning and probing. Joshua took a step forward and stumbled, nearly collapsing to the ground, his body finally giving out after all he'd been through that morning.

"We need a medic over here," one of the security officers shouted. A few seconds later, Joshua found himself being loaded onto a stretcher and rushed to the base's medical ward. As they rushed through the base, he saw a number of familiar faces from his old base, many of whose faces lit up with recognition upon seeing him.

He was brought to the hospital and emptied onto a cot. A medic poked and prodded at him, looking him over. He didn't seem to have any serious injuries except for some muscle strain and exhaustion, as well as some malnourishment.

While he was letting himself be treated, he heard a small commotion at the hospital's entrance. Someone trying to get in.

"We heard he was back," a familiar voice shouted.

"We want to see him," another said.

Joshua's face brightened. Could it be? He looked past the doctor bandaging his arm to see Katie and Dayton.

"Guys!" Joshua said weakly.

"Captain Cage!" they shouted, pushing through and running to him.

"We thought you were dead," Katie said.

"How did you ever get away?" Dayton said. "Had to have been awesome."

"What happened to James?" Katie asked.

Joshua tried to work up the energy to answer them, but before he could, one of his doctors ushered them away.

"The captain needs a lot of rest right now," he said. "You can visit with him later."

Both looked disappointed, but nodded. "We'll see you later," Katie said, touching him on the shoulder.

Joshua nodded. "See you guys. I missed you."

Both of his friends were ushered out of the room, and he let the doctor finish patching him up. Then he was told to get some rest. He laid down, and within a matter of minutes had drifted off to sleep.

Joshua awoke several hours later. At first, he thought he was back in his stupid cell in the Black Cross compound. He sat up and looked around. A curtain had been pulled around him to give him some privacy. That wasn't right. He could hear doctors moving around on the other side. That definitely wasn't right. Everything came rushing back to him: the escape, the snack shop, the medics, James.

"Oh, yeah," he said.

He rubbed his head. His body still ached, but it felt better than it had in a long time. He'd gotten some good food and a decent amount of rest. His tattered clothes and the rest of his belongings were stacked on a small desk nearby, along with a small white envelope. Curious, Joshua picked it up and opened it to find a letter asking him to come to Conference Room B at 10:00 once he'd been cleared to leave.

That was in a couple more hours. Joshua placed the letter back on his desk and laid back down, getting a little more rest and trying not to think about James. When the time finally came, the doctor looked him over one more time and cleared him to leave.

Joshua found his way to the door marked as conference room B and pushed the door open. Inside, a number of decorated officers sat around a large conference table, deep in discussion. As soon as he stepped in, the room fell silent. The man at the head of the table stood. To Joshua's surprise, he recognized him as the same man who'd been running the snack shop above, now dressed up in full military regalia, rather that the white hat and apron he'd been wearing before.

"Captain Cage," he said, stepping around the table. "Welcome." He approached Joshua and shook his hand. "I am General Edgar Kenpachi."

Another flicker of recognition. "General Kenpachi?" Joshua asked. He remembered James's last words to him. "Head of the Ranger Project?"

The general raised an eyebrow, looking at him strangely. "That's correct," he said. He gestured to his fellows. "You know General Hunter and Blake, I presume?"

Two of the generals, Joshua's former commanding officers, nodded.

"I do."

"You know why you're here?"

"Yes."

"Then why don't you take a seat." General Kenpachi gestured to the one empty chair in the room.

"Yes, sir." Joshua sat down.

General Kenpachi returned to his own seat and shuffled through his papers. "Let's get started, shall we?" he said, leaning forward and looking Joshua in the eye. "Why don't you start off with the Black Cross attack on the Silver City base and tell us everything that has happened to you since then?"

Joshua nodded. The generals around the room were all silent, waiting for his response.

"When the attack started," he began, "I ran into the science building to find my brother. We ran into an ambush as we tried to escape. We were taken to a secret compound in Silver City's warehouse district, where we were brought before their leader."

Several generals looked at each other. "You met the fuhrer?" General Blake asked.

Joshua nodded. "The Black Cross knew about the ranger project that James was working on and wanted him to build a super suit for them."

Several panicked whispers swept through the room. "You're sure they knew?" General Hunter asked.

Joshua nodded. "From the way they were talking, it sounded like they had a mole within EAGLE who fed them that information. They also knew that James was one of the project's head scientists."

Another wave of panicked whispers. Several started scribbling down notes. General Kenpachi held up a hand, silencing the room. He fixed his eyes on Joshua. "Why take you as well?" he asked.

Joshua swallowed. "They used me as leverage. They knew about our relationship and tortured me in order to force James to do as they wanted."

"So he agreed to build the suit then?" one general asked.

Joshua nodded.

"The same suit that was stashed in the alley behind Gon," another general asked.

Joshua nodded again. "We played along with their demands," he said. "We built a fully functional suit. I acted as the guinea pig to test out the suit's components. Once we were ready, James wiped out their system with an EMP and a virus he had hidden in the code, and then I wore the suit to fight our way out."

General Kenpachi was silent for a moment. He seemed hesitant to ask his next question. "And what happened James Cage?" he asked.

Joshua didn't answer. A lump formed in his throat that pressed against his ribcage and made him want to cry out in agony. He felt the eyes of a dozen generals on him.

"Captain Cage?" General Hunter said.

Joshua cleared his throat and pushed past the pain. "He didn't make it," he said. "He was killed in out escape. The Golden Mask ambushed us with a rocket launcher. James pushed me out of the way and got caught in the blast. I wanted to save him, but . . . He told me I had to get out, to get the suit back to EAGLE. He told me to find you."

He looked up at General Kenpachi. The general cleared his throat, picking up his papers and shuffling through them. His eyes seemed a little wet.

Finally, he leaned forward.

"I am sorry for your loss, Captain Cage," he said. "James was one of our most brilliant minds, and EAGLE has lost a great asset today. Even more than that, he was my friend and my coworker. He will be missed."

The room was silent. General Kenpachi cleared his throat and set his papers down, moving forward. "I take it, then," he said, "based on some of your answers, that James told you at least a little bit about what he was working on."

Joshua nodded. "He told me some," he said. "Only mostly what the Black Cross already knew. And then a little bit more in code. I know that he was involved with a project called the Ranger Project. That their goal was to create a team of super soldiers using specialized suits that would enhance the wearer's physical abilities tenfold, at least by his approximation. I know that James was brought in six months ago, because the original design had been faulty."

Joshua worked his mouth, deciding whether or not to share the last detail that James had told him. "I also know that I had been considered and submitted as a candidate to be selected as the first ranger."

Joshua looked up at General Kenpachi. The general was silent for a minute, writing down everything Joshua had told him. He looked at the generals around him, a silent conversation passing between them. General Kenpachi cleared his throat and addressed Joshua. "Your brother told you the truth," he said. "All of your information was accurate. We are indeed constructing a series of super suits to combat the Black Cross, and James Cage was one of our head scientists on the project. That is all correct."

Joshua raised an eyebrow. "Why?" he asked. "I'm not a scientist."

General Kenpachi searched through his files and pulled one out, spreading it across the table. Joshua's own picture stared back at him, on top of several forms detailing every facet of his service with EAGLE.

"James also told you the truth regarding that last part," General Kenpachi said. "He approached me with your name about two weeks before the attack happened. After careful observation of you around the base and looking over your file, I ultimately agreed with him. We put together a request and submitted your name to the committee for evaluation. Their response came two days after the attack."

He set down another file, with a big red "confirmed" stamp across it.

"You were accepted for the position," he said. "As you can imagine, we believed you and your brother to be lost to us and hard started searching for new candidates for the role. That was, of course, before you showed up at the shop yesterday."

Joshua's eyes widened. He picked up his confirmation and flipped it over, hardly daring to believe it.

"Although you will have to undergo a new evaluation, and some rigorous training, our offer still stands," the general said. "Will you accept?"

Joshua stared up at him. He thought of his brother, and his dying wish for him. "Become the ranger you were always meant to be," he'd said.

Joshua's eyes welled up, and his heart filled with determination. "With every fiber of my being," he said.

General Kenpachi smiled and got to his feet. "In that case," he said. "Welcome to the Ranger Project."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

Becoming the Red Ranger

About a week later, Joshua followed General Kenpachi down a long hallway inside a secret section of the underground base. By his side walked his friends, Katie and Dayton, alongside Doug Cummins and Harriet Nixon, the two youngest recruits of his old squad. After the meeting with the generals, General Kenpachi had instructed Joshua that, as a ranger, he was allowed to select up to four to be a part of his support team.

Joshua looked around at his support team. All four were looking around in amazement at this entire section of the base that they had previously believed to be no more than a broom closet. Even Katie had let her normally stoic facade slip a little. Katie had been his first pick. Throughout the six months he had served at the base, she had always proven herself dependable and trustworthy. Dayton had been a little iffy, but Joshua had still always been able to count on him. The cadets behind him, however, he chose for their still youthful and passionate approach to their service.

General Kenpachi stopped before a heavy security door just like the one that had led into James's old lab. He turned to face everyone. "Welcome to the Ranger Project," he said. Everything you are about to see behind this door, I must stress that you treat with absolute secrecy. Do you all understand?"

"We got it, General," Dayton said with an exaggerated salute.

Cadets Doug and Harriet nodded excitedly, also saluting.

"Yes, sir," Katie said.

Joshua nodded, looking around at them all. "We're ready to go in, General."

"Good," the general said. He tapped his badge to the door's surface and its heavy security mechanism clicked into place. He pulled the door open, and Joshua and his support team stepped inside.

The laboratory appeared much like James's old lab, a large central room lined with high-tech computers. Scientists walked back and forth, working at the computers, but stopping to salute as the general walked in. On a table in the center, sat an almost-finished Ranger Suit, bright red in color, exactly as Joshua remembered it. He felt the same pull toward it. A second suit sat on a table beside it. The makeshift suit that James had built that he had worn to escape from the Black Cross.

"Whoa," Cadet Doug said, his eyes wide. He and Harriet went up to the suits and stared at them. They looked up at Joshua. "These are them?" he asked.

That morning, after Joshua had received confirmation that they'd all passed evaluation, he'd pulled the four of them aside and explained about the project, including about his escape from the Black Cross. The cadets were now both looking at the makeshift suit with a sense of reverence.

Joshua nodded. "That's them," he said.

"Yes they are."

A younger scientist with curly black hair and a lopsided smile stepped up to the table. Joshua immediately recognized him as Anthony Starr, the scientist that James had frequently eaten his lunch with.

He nodded at Joshua. "Welcome back, Captain," he said. "I'm glad to see James's request went through after all. Welcome to the Ranger Project."

"Doctor Starr here is one of the last remaining members of the original team," General Kenpachi explained, introducing him to the rest of Joshua's team. "He's been helping take the lead ever since the attack."

"You can just call me Anthony if you want," the scientist said. "I had been on shore leave visiting my mom in the states when the attack happened. Completely missed the whole affair. Came back only to find that our old base had been destroyed and most of my friends were dead. So that was . . . nice."

He looked away for a moment, his dark brown eyes full of sadness. He looked back at Joshua and his team. "Sorry about your brother, by the way," he said, scratching his head awkwardly.

Anthony looked over the four members of Joshua's support team. Dayton, Doug, and Harriet were currently messing with the birdies attached to the suits' belts. "I assume this is your support team then?"

Joshua nodded. "That's them. These are Dayton Owens, Doug Cummins, and Harriet Nixon." All three saluted quickly at their names, stepping back from the birdies. Joshua gestured to Katie, who was still standing dutifully at his side, although he noticed she had been watching the birdies curiously as well. "And this is Katie Young, my right-hand."

Anthony nodded. "Nice to meet you all." He looked at General Kenpachi. "Want me to take the lead from here?"

General Kenpachi nodded. "The table's all yours."

"Alright," Anthony said. "Well, I assume you all know at least a little about what we're doing here. Our goal is to make a series of super-suits in order to fight the Black Cross. This is our first prototype."

He launched into an explanation of the suit and everything built into it, pulling up blueprints on a nearby console to show them how it all worked. All things that Joshua had already learned so far.

"The harness uses a hydraulic limbic system, right?" Dayton aked.

Joshua looked at him in surprise.

"That's correct," Anthony said, looking at him curiously. "How did you know that?"

Dayton shrugged. "Used to be a mechanic back before the war," he said. "I always kept up on the latest technology. This is a bit more advanced than anything I've seen, but the connectors are all in the right place."

Joshua glanced at Katie. She looked about as stunned as he did.

After explaining about the suit, Anthony and General Kenpachi led the group down a short corridor off to one side and through another security door. Inside was an enormous gymnasium and workout area, full of every kind of training equipment Joshua could imagine. "This will be your training area, Captain Cage," Anthony explained. "Although the suit will do a lot of the work for you, being a ranger will be extremely taxing on your body and you will need to be in the best shape possible."

Joshua stared around the room. It was far larger than any gym he had ever seen, and the equipment was far more heavy-duty than anything he'd ever worked with. "What kind of workout routine are we talking about here?" he asked.

General Kenpachi cleared his throat. He pulled a sheet from one of his files and handed it to Joshua."This is the recommended daily routine."

Joshua's eyes went wide. Dayton glanced at it over his shoulder. "Oh, dang," he said.

From that day forward, Joshua began his training regimen. It was far more taxing than anything he had ever experienced in his years as a soldier, harder than anything he'd done while at boot camp. For the first few days, he could barely get through half of it before collapsing. He had to be constantly monitored by a team of doctors, and after each workout, he was put through a specially designed therapy routine developed specifically for the program.

His support team helped out wherever they could. Katie ran alongside him for most of his laps, while Dayton worked with him on his strength training. Doug and Harriet kept him constantly supplied with snacks and drinks. All the while, Anthony and his team kept working on the suit, using the makeshift suit to finish it. Here and there, they would request that Joshua wear one of the suit's components during his workout to make sure it was working right. The day was always easier when he did so.

At long last, he was ready. Working hard every day, he finally reached the point he needed to be at. He could run longer and work harder without even breaking a sweat. General Kenpachi had him start running his workout routines while wearing the various pieces of the suit as they were finished, so he could get used to them.

One day, he was called into the main lab and away from his workout.

"Put this on," Anthony said, holding up the newly finished helmet.

Joshua did so, slipping the helmet down over his head, much easier than he'd been able to with the makeshift helmet. A small clasp had been added to the side to open it up a little, and the inside had a lot more padding. Anthony's voice sounded from a tiny earpiece inside the helmet. "Do you hear me, Captain?" he asked.

Joshua nodded. "Yeah, I do."

"Good. I'm going to start running diagnostics across the visor. Tell me if it all looks okay."

Joshua sat there for twenty minutes, letting Anthony work. Once he was satisfied, his team started hooking up other pieces of the suit onto Joshua's body and connecting them to the helmet to make sure they worked well together.

"Suiting up kinda takes a while, doesn't it?" Joshua said, thinking it might not be very practical.

Anthony smirked. "Oh, don't worry," he said. "We've got a plan for that."

He finished attaching the piece he was working on and stepped over to a nearby table, picking up a small rectangular object and showing it to Joshua. "This is what we call a morpher," he said. "The suit was constructed using nanotechnology. This will control them. The nanites will be contained in here when not in use, and you can activate them with this middle button. We last clocked their suit-up time at about two seconds."

He handed the morpher over to Joshua for him to see. It seemed to feel both light and heavy in his hand. He wasn't sure he understood the science behind it all. He'd just have to take Starr's word for it. "Nice," he said, handing it back to Anthony.

The team worked for a couple more days, Joshua pushing himself to his limits to make sure he was in the best shape possible, harder than the doctors were recommending.

"Hey," Katie said, after Joshua stumbled during a run. "Take it easy. You're doing fine."

"I can't take it easy," he said, getting back to his feet and taking off running. "This is too important."

Katie scowled. She ran to catch up to him. "Just pace yourself, okay?"

Joshua couldn't. He wouldn't. As long as James's killers were out there, he couldn't let himself rest.

Finally, two days later, Anthony called Joshua and his crew back into the lab. "What do you think?" he said.

The full completed suit lay on the table, everyone working on the project gathered around it. Joshua stepped up to it, looking it over in full for the first time. It was bright red, with a blue visor and yellow lines of energy crossing the chest, connecting to the power source at its core. A small cape draped around the shoulders, with the birdies attached proudly to its belt.

"It's very red," he said.

"Not much need to hide, is there?" Anthony said. "This thing's designed for taking down hordes of enemies. Stealth isn't going to help much there."

Joshua shrugged. "I suppose not."

Anthony tapped the button on the morpher at the suit's wrist. In an instant, the suit broke down and disappeared, seeming to disintegrate before Joshua's eyes, leaving only the morpher behind. "Ready to suit up?" Anthony said, picking up the morpher.

Joshua nodded. "Let's do this."

"This way, please." Anthony led Joshua over to a small raised platform. "Step up here."

Joshua stepped onto the platform, and everyone gathered around him. He looked around, seeing the faces of Katie, Dayton, Anthony, General Kenpachi, Doug, and Harriet all cheering him on. Everyone but James.

Anthony handed him his morpher. "There you go," he said.

Joshua accepted it. "Thank you," he said.

He held the small device in his hand for just a second before strapping it around his wrist and pulling it tight. It felt right, as if it belonged there. Taking a deep breath, he pressed the button in the middle. The device activated, and a million tiny nanites flooded across his body, spreading up his arms and over his torso like a swarm of tiny insects. They spread up and over his face, blinding him for a second before he found himself looking through the helmet's visor. The suit's features started to take shape, the birdies forming at his belt and his cape, gloves, and boots all separating themselves from the main body. He felt the internal harness form around his arms, legs, and chest. Before he knew it, it was over. The suit's power kicked on, and his visor lit up with all manner of readings, mostly identifying and displaying the names and information of everyone standing around him.

Joshua stared down at his hand, flexing it inside the glove. Power and strength coursed through it like he'd never felt before, not even in the makeshift suit. A mirror hung on the wall beside the platform. He looked into it, seeing himself a fully realized ranger for the very first time. He could hardly believe he was looking at himself. He moved around inside the suit, quicker and stronger than he'd ever been. It was everything his brother had believed it could be.

A wave of pain and anguish washed through his heart. James's absence from the crowd hurt all the more. He should have been here for this moment, to see his brother become a ranger. It was only because of him that this was all possible.

Joshua trembled. He wanted to break down right there, but he knew he couldn't. Everyone was watching him, looking up at him expectantly. He had to be strong. He looked at Katie, who seemed to be watching him with concern and understanding. She seemed to be the only one who had noticed his slight tremble. She met his eyes and gave him a reassuring nod.

"How does it feel?" Anthony asked, smirking and looking over the suit proudly.

"It feels good," Joshua said, moving around. "Really good."

"Shall we go test it out?" He gestured back toward the gym.

"Let's go." Joshua stepped off the platform and followed Anthony and General Kenpachi back into the gym. His support team followed closely behind.

Once inside the gym, Anthony stopped. "Everything in here was designed to work with the ranger suit," he explained. "It's your choice, Captain. What do you want to try out first?"

Joshua looked up at the incredibly high ceilings above him, now understanding what they were for. He looked down at the birdies at his hips and grinned. "I know just the thing," he said, clicking them on. The birdies flared to life and he lifted off the ground, taking off into the sky. He raced around the room, veering tight corners and flying as fast as he could. The birdies worked even better than the makeshift ones had. They were incredibly intuitive and showed no signs of giving out after a few minutes of flight. He circled the room a few times while his friends on the ground whooped and cheered him on.

After a few minutes. He came back down.

"Not bad," Anthony said, making some notes on a clipboard. He gestured to a nearby punching machine. "How about we try out our strength next?"

Joshua turned and punched the device as hard as he possibly could. The device stood its ground, but it seemed to be rattling a lot more afterwards. One of the scientists took the readings for his punch at around 10,000 PSI.

"Holy shoot!" Dayton gasped when he heard it.

Next, they tested out his speed. Anthony made him run three laps around the gym, which was the size of about two professional football fields. He ran it in a little over twenty seconds.

"Very nice," Anthony said. "Now, let's try out your weapons."

"Weapons?" Joshua asked, confused.

"Yes, sir," Anthony said. "Check your holster."

"I don't have a holster." Joshua put his hand down where a holster ought to be and a gun formed in his hand out of nanites. Joshua held it up and stared at it. "Whoa," he said.

Anthony pointed to a target on the far wall. "See if you can hit it."

Joshua pointed the gun at the target and his visor zeroed in on the target's center. Joshua fired, hitting the bullseye every single time.

"Excellent," Anthony said. "Now, do this in front of your visor." He held his hand out in front of his face in a gripping position.

Joshua did so. A whip formed in his hand the moment he did so, wrapped up so that he held in the middle. Joshua took the grip and unfurled it.

"This whip is made from a polycarbonate fiber," Anthony said. "You can use it in that form if you wish, or you can press the button at your thumb and give it a flick."

Joshua did so. The whip immediately straightened itself out into a razor-thin rapier. "The fibers on this blade are incredibly fine. They can cut through the hardest steel. Be careful with it."

Joshua turned to a target nearby and gestured for everyone to stand back. He slashed the target and it fell apart into two clean pieces. Then he reverted it back to its whip form and lashed it at the fallen piece. The whip immediately wrapped itself tightly around its target, allowing Joshua to fling it into the air and slam it back down.

Joshua spent the rest of the day testing out everything the suit had to offer. Anthony and his team took detailed notes on it all, while his support team could only stare in awe at his incredible feats. Even Katie lost all composure and got wrapped up in the assignment. Finally, General Kenpachi had to step in and call it a day.

"Good work today, everyone," he said. "I want you all to get a good night's sleep tonight. I'll see you bright and early in the morning."

Joshua tapped his morpher and the suit vanished back inside of it. A sudden wave of exhaustion crashed over him. He pulled off the morpher and offered it back to Anthony.

"Oh, no," he said. "It's all yours now, buddy. Use it well. Don't leave it out in the open."

A few seconds later, the morpher securely stashed away inside his bag, Joshua headed out of the lab with his support team as they headed for the mess hall to get dinner. Dayton was just chatting about how he needed an extra-sized bowl of curry after all this when Joshua remembered something.

"You guys go on ahead," Joshua told Katie, tapping her on the shoulder. "I'll catch up."

She gave him a suspicious look like she thought he might be going back in for another workout.

"Just going to talk to the general," he assured her.

Joshua found his way to General Kenpachi's office, a little ways down from the lab. He knocked on the door. "Come in," a voice said.

He stepped inside. "Ah, Mr. Cage," General Kenpachi said. "How can I help you?"

"Do you have a minute, sir," Joshua asked.

"Of course," he said. "Come in, sit down."

Joshua took the offered seat. "I was wondering, sir, if you'd looked any more into the location of the warehouse where I and James had been held?"

General Kenpachi smiled a little. "Oh yes," he said. "James left a tracking chip inside the suit you brought back with you. We traced it back to the exact location. We've had spies running reconnaissance on the place ever since. Looks like just a factory from the outside, but there's definitely been some serious Black Cross activity there. I and the rest of the council have been planning on leading a raid on the place within the next few days."

"Oh, good," Joshua said. He chewed his lip. "Sir, if it's not too much to ask, I would like to lead the raid, if I could. Now that the suit is finished."

General Kenpachi chuckled to himself. "I thought you might," he said.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

The School Bus

Three days later, Joshua stood on top of a warehouse in his civvies, using binoculars to watch the warehouse across from him. On the street below, cars passed on their way to work, the drivers blissfully unaware of what was about to happen.

Joshua looked back at General Kenpachi, who stood beside him with a sniper rifle. He nodded, and the general pulled out his radio. "All teams, check in," he said.

"We're all good here," Katie's voice said. Joshua spotted her head poke up momentarily on the building to the north.

"I'm good too," Dayton's voice said. Joshua directed his gaze to the street, where Dayton waved from behind a tree. Harriet Nixon crouched behind another tree nearby. "Ready when you are."

"I'm here too," Doug Cummins said. Joshua checked the building to the south, where the young cadet's round face popped up.

"Everyone's in position, Captain," General Kenpachi said. "We'll wait for your signal."

Joshua nodded. He pulled out his own radio and clicked it on. "How are things looking on your end, Anthony," he asked.

"Everything looks good here, Josh," Anthony's voice came through from headquarters. "We don't detect any movement."

"Good," Joshua said. "Keep me updated."

"Will do. Good luck out there, Captain. We'll stay connected to you while you're in there."

"Please do," Joshua said. "Over and out."

He switched off the radio and stepped up onto the ledge of the building. He tapped his morpher and within seconds he found himself inside the bright red suit once again, looking out through the blue visor. He raised his arm into the air so that his teammates could see him. With another step, he dropped from the building to the ground below, landing like he had merely taken a single step down.

He crossed to the street, Dayton and Harriet stepped out to join him. He could see Katie and Doug's teams approaching the building from the north and south. Joshua's team crossed the street and approached the warehouse's front door. Joshua nodded to Harriet and she stepped up to the door, placing a small charge on the door's frame.

"Good to go, Captain," she said.

"Thank you, Nixon," Joshua said. He gestured for everyone to step back. He tapped on his visor, checking to see if any enemy soldiers were hiding nearby. He held out his fingers to Harriet and counted down from three to two to one. Harriet hit the detonator.

The charge blew. A small explosion blew the door open. Joshua and his team waited a couple of seconds, waiting for gunfire.

None came.

Joshua stepped carefully to the doorframe, holding his gun at the ready and looking inside to see if anyone was coming. No one. That's weird, he thought. He stepped inside, waving for Dayton and Harriet to join him. The team stepped carefully down the corridor, keeping an eye out for anyone coming.

"Katie, Doug," Joshua said into his helmet. "How are your teams doing?"

"We're good, Captain," Katie said. "We just got inside on our end."

"We did too, Captain," Doug said. "I don't see anyone around. Are we sure this was the right building?"

"Positive," Joshua said. He and his team rounded another corner. Still no one. He tapped the side of his visor, switching it to infrared vision. The whole building seemed empty, except for one large cluster of heat signatures in the very center of the building.

"Wait," he said. "There's a large group there." He pointed in the cluster's general direction.

"That smells like a trap to me," Dayton said.

"What should we do, Captain?" Harriet asked.

"Keep going," Joshua said. "Be careful," he said.

They worked their way through the building, watching their every step and keeping an eye out for any traps. They checked each room as they went. Most of the rooms had been cleared out, the whole building seeming abandoned. Joshua kept his eyes on the cluster in the middle.

"Captain, come in," Katie's voice said.

Joshua touched his ear out of habit. "I'm here, Katie. What is it?"

"I think I've found the lab you and James worked in," she said. "I'm going in to check it out, see what I can learn."

Joshua was silent for a moment. "Alright," he said. "Be careful."

"Will do, Captain."

They rounded the next corner, and bumped right into Doug and his team.

"Hey, guys," Doug said.

"Hey, Doug, Joshua said. "Find anything?"

"Not yet, Captain."

"Let's keep going. Stick close to us for now."

Doug and his team fell into place behind Joshua, Doug and Harriet sharing a quick hug.

Joshua led them around a few more doors before coming to the door into the middle room. Up close, the cluster seemed strange, the individual heat signatures moving around erratically, seeming smaller than the average person. "Everyone stand back," Joshua said.

He balled up his fist and punched the door with all of his might, the heavy steel crumpling like paper and crashing to the floor.

Inside was a massive room, like a hangar or a parking garage, except with no visible exits anywhere. In the very center of the room, a single school bus had been parked. It was packed with small children, between the ages of five and ten, screaming, crying, and pounding on the windows while the two adults Joshua could see were doing their best to keep them all calm. The driver seemed to be slumped against the wheel, unconscious.

"A school bus?" Dayton asked. "What's that doing here?"

"I don't know," Joshua said. He tapped on his helmet. "General Kenpachi, Anthony, we've got a school bus full of kids here."

"What?" Anthony said incredulously.

"Did we receive any reports of missing kids?"

"Not that I remember," General Kenpachi said.

Joshua scanned the room with his visor, switching between his vision settings. It looked like wires had been laid all around the room under the floor, rigged up to explosives.

"This whole room is rigged to blow any second," he told his teammates.

Dayton, Doug, and Harriet all stared at him with wide eyes. "Why would someone do such a thing?" Harriet asked.

A second heavy steel door slammed into place in the doorframe behind them, trapping them inside. Secret doors opened up all around the room and thirty Black Cross soldiers filed in, surrounding them on all sides. Joshua's teammates packed in around him as the soldiers threatened them with their guns.

"What is all this?" Joshua demanded.

A peal of laughter ripped through the room. High on the opposite wall across from them, a large monitor clicked on and the gleaming golden head of the Golden Mask appeared, his artificial smile still as wide as it had always been.

"Well, well, well," he said, tilting his head to the side. "If it isn't my dear old friend, Joshua Cage. It's so nice to see you again. And look at that, you've brought your whole gaggle of friends to see me. Isn't that nice?"

"You?" Joshua said, clenching his fist. "You're still alive?"

The Golden Mask rubbed at his chest for a second, seeming to cringe in pain. "As you can see," he said. "I am still alive, no thanks to you. That suit of yours did quite a number on me, I must admit. But you didn't keep me down for long."

He spread his arms dramatically. "What do you think of my little present? I prepared it special, just for you, Captain Cage. I hope you like it."

Joshua looked down at the children locked inside the bus and the bombs lining the room. "What sort of game are you playing?" he demanded

The Golden Mask chuckled. "We knew you'd be back eventually, Captain Cage. So, I put together a little test for you, just to see how you would handle it." He fell silent, tilting his head back and forth as he studied Joshua's suit. "It truly is a marvelous suit your team has made. Much better than the old one. So, let's put it to the test, shall we? Let's see if you can get through all my men, save those kids, and get them all out of the building before the bombs go off, all without losing any of your friends here. You have about five minutes. Have fun!"

The monitor turned black and the Golden Mask disappeared, leaving Joshua and his team alone with the horde of Black Cross soldiers. Joshua clenched his fist, planning out his next moves.

"Everybody, get down."

Joshua moved with lightning speed, moving in a circle around his friends, taking down those soldiers nearest them with a sweeping kick and clearing a path. "Get to the bus!" he shouted.

The team ran for the bus, crouching the whole way. Joshua followed them, pulling out his blaster and sniping any soldiers who came near. At the door to the bus, Joshua scanned it, seeing that the door frame was lined with triggers to set off the bombs if they tried to open it. "Harriet, can you do anything about that?" he asked

"I can try, sir," Harriet said, crouching down to study the connectors running from the door frame. Everyone else gathered around her, shielding her and picking off every last soldier that came near. Thanks to Joshua's sharpshooting prowess, they were able to take down most without much trouble.

"I can't," Harriet said finally as Dayton shot the last one. "They're connected to every single bomb in the place. I can't even try to deactivate one without setting off all the others."

"Got it," Joshua said. "Thanks anyway."

Joshua considered the problem. He noticed that the bombs were only connected to the frame and not the door itself. He drew his whip and shifted it into its rapier form. With a series of swift, precise cuts, he sliced a person-sized hole in the door before changing his weapon back into its whip form and pulling the door free, leaving the door frame behind and the triggers untouched.

"There we go," he said.

He leaped over the door and into the bus. The kids screamed as he stepped up to face them, probably thinking he was another Black Cross mask. Joshua quickly pulled off his helmet, showing them his face. "Hey, it's okay," he said. "I'm a good guy. We're with EAGLE, we're here to help."

He looked to the two teachers on board. "There's bombs on the door here, so the kids will have to step over them. My team is waiting to help you."

The older of the two teachers nodded. "Come on, kids," she said, getting up and helping to corral her students. "Let's follow the nice man down the steps."

She and her companion ushered the kids one by one out of their seats and down the steps. Dayton and Doug stood on either side of the door waiting to receive them, lifting each of them up over the door and onto the ground.

"Doug, lead them back to the exit," Joshua said.

"Will do, Captain," he said. "Everybody, follow me and watch your step."

One of Doug's team stepped up to take his place. The kids filed out, kept in line by their teachers. Harriet worked studiously nearby, trying to figure out the explosives.

"Come on, hurry, hurry," Joshua said, hurrying each child past until the last one had been helped over the door, leaving just the second teacher who hopped over on her own. "That's everyone," Joshua said, checking the empty bus.

"Except the driver," Dayton said.

Joshua looked up, rememberign the driver still slumped over the wheel. "Right," he said. He turned and tried to shake the driver. "Hey, buddy," he said.

No response. He had been strapped down to the wheel and the seat with his head facing away from the door. Joshua switched to infrared to see that his body wasn't giving off any heat.

"I think he's dead," Joshua said. He tore the bindings tying the driver to the wheel and sat the body upright, jumping back and almost falling down the steps as he came face-to-face with the burned, decaying face of his brother. James's body had been dressed up in a blue, one-piece uniform, the chest left open to show that a large cross shape had been roughly carved into it and the edges of the wound burned black. Joshua fought back the urge to vomit and stared at his brother in horror.

His mind went numb. The whole world disappeared, except for him and his brother's mutilated body, dressed up and treated like a doll.

"Hey, Captain," Dayton said, pulling at his arm. "Come on, Captain. Captain Cage. Josh!"

Joshua woke from his stupor and looked down at his friend. "Are you okay, buddy?" Dayton asked, concerned.

Joshua forced himself to remember their situation. The kids who needed his help. "Yeah," he said. I'm okay. Help me get him out of here."

"Sure thing, Captain," Dayton said, grabbing the railing hoisting himself over the door frame. Together, they undid the bands lashing James's body to the driver's seat and hefted him onto their shoulders. They hopped out of the bus and rejoined the kids who were gathered around the heavy steel door with Doug and Harriet.

"Everyone, stand back," Joshua shouted.

The crowd parted, and Joshua handed off James's body to Dayton. He balled up his fist and punched it with all of his might, crumpling it. He punched it again and it flew into the hallway beyond.

"Let's go," Joshua said, ushering everyone through. "Doug, take the lead. Your entrance was closer."

"Yes, sir," the young cadet said.

The team ran through the building, Doug leading them back to the entrance. As they ran, Joshua kicked on his communicator. "Katie, what are you and your team doing?"

"We're just heading out, sir. I think we found something important."

"Well, get out of the building. Fast. The whole thing's going to blow in about a minute."

The door appeared before them. Doug barreled through it like a human cannonball and held it open so the kids could run past. The teachers stayed with the team to help check that every single kid was present and accounted for. Once all were through and the teachers had followed, Joshua and his team closed the doors behind them.

"Keep going," Joshua shouted. "Head for the street. Get out of the blast radius."

According to Joshua's visor, they still had forty seconds left. Thirty-nine. Thirty-eight. A tremendous explosion rocked the world, knocking everyone off their feet, an intense wave of heat washing across their backs. "Cover your heads!" he shouted. Joshua crawled to the nearest group of kids and covered them with his body, debris simply bouncing off his armor like it was nothing.

After a few seconds, Joshua raised his head, looking back at where the building had once stood, now a smoking pile of rubble. "Are you all okay?" he asked the kids he'd been protecting.

"Yeah," they nodded.

Beside him, Dayton had been covering a couple more kids, James's body still draped over his shoulder. "Are you alright?" Joshua asked.

"Oh, yeah," Dayton said, shaking himself off. "You can't keep me down." He looked back at the mess behind them. "What a blast."

Joshua looked back at the rest of the kids. Doug, Harriet, and their teams had covered a few more kids each. Everyone seemed to have come through just fine with only a few minor scrapes and bruises to mention.

"It went off early, right?" Doug asked.

"Yeah," Joshua said.

"Why?" Harriet said. "And why the kids."

Looking at James's body and remembering the Golden Mask's message to him, as well as the ease with which they dispatched the soldiers, he suspected it had all simply been to screw with him, but he didn't say that out loud. He tapped the side of his head. "Katie, come in," he said. "Are you and your team alright?"

"Yeah, we're here, Captain," her voice said. She coughed a little. "We're all fine."

Joshua breathed a sigh of relief. "Where are you?"

"Over here. On the other side of the building. Give me a second."

About thirty seconds later, three figures appeared through the dust cloud, rounding where the corner of the building had been. "Is everyone okay?" Katie said, running to them. Her eyes scanned the crowd of small children surrounding them. "Why are there kids here?" Her eyes fell on the mutilated body of James on Dayton's shoulder. It all seemed a bit too much for her to process at the moment. She looked at Joshua. "What happened?"

"It's a long story," Joshua said wearily. "You said you found something important?"

Katie glanced around at the group. "Yeah," she said. "I'll tell you later. Let's focus on getting these kids out of here for now."

Joshua nodded. "Good idea," he said. He tapped his helmet. "General, Anthony, we could use an extraction please."

"Coming right up, Captain," General Kenpachi said.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

Joshua and Katie

A short time later, Joshua and his team returned to Snack Shop Gon, taking the secret elevator down to the lab, where Anthony and the science team waited to greet them.

"Welcome back," he said.

Joshua nodded to Anthony as he sat down on the nearby bench, tapping his morpher and deactivating his suit. While he let the medical team look him over for any injuries, James's body was brought into the lab and laid down on a stretcher, the grotesque black cross still carved into his chest. Joshua stared at his brother's face, his mind still numb. General Kenpachi stepped into the room, looking down at the body with a grim expression on his face.

"Take him away, please," the general told a couple of the medics. "Make sure he's well taken care of."

Yes, sir," one medic said.

"How are the kids?" Joshua asked once the body had been removed.

"They're alright," the general said. "We got them back to their school and their parents were notified. They're all in good condition and all accounted for."

"Oh, good." Joshua breathed a sigh of relief.

A few minutes later, the entire team got together in a nearby conference room to be debriefed. Joshua gave his account of the day's events and then each of his team took their turn adding in any additional details. Joshua didn't really pay too much attention to the meeting, his mind in another room with a couple of medics and a corpse. He only came back to the present when Katie failed to mention the intel she'd said she'd found. Joshua looked at her strangely, but didn't say anything about it right that moment. If he knew Katie, she likely had a good reason for it.

After about a half an hour of back-and-forth, General Kenpachi released them to go back to their barracks to get ready for lunch. Joshua walked silently down the hall with his team as Dayton, Doug, and Harriet talked excitedly about the events of the day's mission and the lasagna being served in the mess hall. He noticed Katie didn't seem to be talking much either.

"You guys go on ahead without me," he told his crew once they reached the barracks. "I'm just going to lay down for a while."

He crossed the room and slumped down onto his personal cot. Dayton and the cadets glanced at each other, watching him with concern.

"Alright, Cap," Dayton said. "We'll save a place for you, okay?"

Joshua nodded, but didn't say anything more. His team went to their personal footlockers and started changing, carrying on their conversation. Joshua ignored them, waiting for them to leave. After a few minutes, Dayton, Doug, and Harriet finished up and headed out for the mess hall. Joshua opened one eye, watching the few other soldiers go about their business. He rolled over, pretending to go to sleep. Images of the day's events, the sight of his brother's body, and the memory of the days both he and their parents had died ricocheted around in his head, slamming into each other at full force. He clenched his fists, trying to force the images to just go away and leave him alone.

Katie sat on her own cot nearby, watching Joshua and waiting for the soldiers to clear out. He was pretending to sleep, but she knew him better than that. Once the last soldier was gone and the room was empty, Katie got up off of her cot and crossed the room to Joshua's cot.

"Captain Cage," she said.

Joshua ignored her, pretending to be asleep.

"May I speak with you?"

Joshua was silent for a couple more seconds before grunting to show he was listening. Katie sat down on the cot beside him. "Are you okay?" she asked.

Joshua opened one eye and looked over at his friend. He swallowed several times before answering. "I'm fine," he said, his voice hoarse.

"No, you're not."

Joshua shook his head. His second-in-command could be annoyingly persistent. He sat up on his cot and turned to face her. His eyes were red, his whole frame feeling heavy. He really didn't want to talk right now. "I'm fine," he said. "Really, it's not a big deal."

Katie crossed her arms and gave him a look that said she could see right through him.

Joshua shook his head, his eyes still seeing James laid out on the table before him. "Do you have a brother?" he asked her.

"I do," Katie said. "A little brother. Taran. He'll be ten years old this August."

Joshua looked up at her. "That's a bit of an age gap."

Katie smiled. "Just a bit. Our parents took their time with the second kid. He lives with them back home in Turtle Cove." She fiddled with the hem of her uniform. "He's a sweet kid. You'd like him." Her face got hard. "If anyone ever did anything to him like what they did to James, I'd rip them all limb from limb."

"I think I know the feeling," Joshua said, scowling at the floor.

"I never really knew James," Katie said. "Not the way you did. Tell me about him."

Joshua smiled sadly. "I don't know what to say," he said. "He was smart. He was so smart. He got into all the best schools and graduated with the highest honors. Our parents were always so proud of him. He could solve any math problem you put in front of him. Sometimes, we would go out of our way to find overly complicated equations for him to solve, only for him to figure them out in about fifteen minutes."

Joshua looked at his hands, holding them like he didn't know what to do with them. "I could never do that. Even passing remedial math was a struggle for me. I was always more of an athlete than a scholar. And even then, James always tried to keep up with me." Joshua smiled, remembering an incident from their childhood. "There was this one time, James tried to climb up a really big tree to try and impress me and got himself stuck up there. He knew _how_ to get down, he just couldn't actually _do_ it physically. I had to climb up there and get him, but the branch broke and we both ended up with broken arms for the next month."

A faint memory pulled at the back of Joshua's mind. He pulled over his footlocker and dug through it for a second, pulling out a pair of dog tags, both old and weathered with age. Engraved on them were the names James and Joshua Cage. Katie leaned forward to get a better look. "Old dog tags?" she asked.

"Our first dogtags," Joshua said. "From just after we joined EAGLE. When we eventually got new ones, James let me hold onto them as a keepsake." He held them lovingly in his hand, brushed his thumb over the engravings.

"Want to see them?" Joshua asked, offering them to Katie.

"Sure," Katie said. Joshua placed them in her hand. She held them carefully, turning them over.

"We both joined EAGLE shortly after our parents died. We made a promise to each other that we'd do whatever it took to bring down the Black Cross."

"You must have really loved your brother," Katie said.

"Yeah," he said. "I did."

Katie handed the dog tags back to him. Joshua looked them over once again, the realization sinking into his heart that he'd never see the awkward kid who got stuck up a tree or the smart young scientist who let his brother keep his old dog tags ever again.

The loss finally sank into his heart. After so many weeks of pushing down his feelings and hiding from his grief, he couldn't keep it back any longer. Despite himself, tears spilled from his eyes and down his cheeks. He doubled over, his body shaking. He covered his face, still trying to hide his pain.

Katie got up off of her cot and moved over to sit beside him. She put her arm around him and just let him cry.

"It's not fair," Joshua said. "James worked so hard on this suit, and he never even got to see it finished." He undid the strap around his wrist and held the morpher in his hand. "How can I pretend to be a ranger, when I couldn't even save the guy who built it? Instead, he had to go and take the blast for me." He set the morpher down on the bed between them. "I don't deserve to be a ranger."

Joshua buried his face in his hands, shaking some more. Katie sat silently, letting him grieve. She picked up the small morpher and held it in her hand.

"Well, you look like a ranger to me," she said. Joshua looked up at her. Katie shifted to face him and get a good look at his face. "In the time that I've known you, you've been a good leader, you have taken care of your team, and you have cared, a lot, about the people you are trying to protect. That sounds like a hero to me. I think James would be proud to see you as a ranger."

Joshua rolled his eyes. "I think you're laying it on a little thick," he said.

Katie grinned. "Maybe," she said. "Look. You didn't save James. That's going to happen sometimes. You don't always get to save everybody. But you saved those kids today, didn't you? And there's a lot of other people you've saved in the past. And there's plenty more you'll save in the future. And if nothing else, at least you got James's body back where it belongs."

Joshua shook his head and stared off into empty space. Katie watched him, wishing she could help him more. She reached out and took his hand. "Look, Josh," she said, calling him by his first name. "I know it hurts. And it's going to keep hurting. But I want you to know you're not alone in this. You still have me. You still have Dayton. And Doug. And Harriet. We all care about you. I care about you. You can lean on us if you need it."

Joshua looked over at her. He smiled and squeezed her hand a little. "You're right," he finally said. He looked down at the morpher in Katie's hand. He held out his hand and she handed back to him. "I suppose James wouldn't want me just sitting here moping all the time."

He dropped Katie's hand and reattached the morpher to his wrist. He gave James's dog tags one last look-over before stashing them back inside his footlocker where he knew they'd be safe. He sat up and took a deep breath. The pain was still there, but he made an active choice to let James go. A slight bit of the burden lifted from his heart.

He looked over at his friend and comrade. "Thank you, Katie," he said.

"No problem, Joshua," she said.

Something tugged at the back of Joshua's mind. "You said you found something, right?" he said. "Something in the lab where James and I had worked?"

Katie nodded. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a tiny flash drive. "I think he left it behind in case something happened to him in the escape. He had it really well hidden, so I think the Black Cross missed it when they were clearing out."

Joshua took the flash drive and held it up. "What was it?"

"Well, that's the thing," Katie said. "It didn't look like it was anything important, just a goodbye message to you, I guess, but it's written weirdly. A lot of words are out of place and flipped around. I think he hid a code inside it."

Joshua looked at the tiny flash drive. He remembered the secret codes that they had used while in the Black Cross compound. It was definitely something his brother would do. Joshua handed the device back to Katie. "Show me," he said.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

The Traitor

Katie plugged her flash drive into the small community computer used in the barracks and pulled up the files she had found. Joshua looked over her shoulder as a long string of coding appeared on the screen.

"What are we looking at here?" he asked.

"Right here," Katie said, highlighting a line of code in the middle. "It's wrong. It doesn't match the coding for the makeshift suit you escaped with."

Joshua raised an eyebrow. Katie knew much more about coding than he did, so he decided to just take her word for it. "Alright?" he said.

Katie clicked on the bit of code itself and an entirely new file popped up on screen. Joshua leaned forward. It seemed to be a message written by James, addressed to him.

"Hey, Josh," it read. "I hope you not do actually see this. I'm rhino this just in case happens something does."

The letter went on like that, full of typos and words out of order. It looked to be several paragraphs long, going on for quite a while. After reading the first few lines, he simply skimmed over the rest. He focused instead on the weird spots and missing words. Knowing James, Joshua figured there had to be a code here. He went over it a few different times, trying to figure out any sort of pattern. Where was the key? He thought. He reached over Katie and navigated back to the coding page. He scanned the whole page before focusing on the incorrect bit of code that had led them to the message. An idea occurred to him.

"Hand me that scrap piece of paper," he said, pulling up a chair. Katie passed the paper to him and he started writing the numbers of the incorrect code down. He then clicked back to the message again and started matching them up word by word. Slowly he started to see the pattern.

"There you are," Joshua said, smiling slightly at his brother's cleverness. He scribbled down each word on the piece of paper, working his way through the message. Once finished, he read through it and pushed it over to Katie so that she could read it.

Katie read through it a few times, before looking up at Joshua. "What's this virus he's talking about?"

"When we escaped, James used a virus to wipe every piece of information on the Ranger Project from the Black Cross's system," he explained. "According to this message, he also programmed the virus to leave behind just a tiny bit of itself inside their system after it was finished."

Katie reread the message again. "He says he left us a code, that when plugged into a computer containing traces of the virus, those traces will react to the code." She flipped over the paper, squinting at it a bit. "But that doesn't help us here, really. We'd have to break into a Black Cross complex to . . . ," her eyes widened. "The mole."

Joshua nodded. She had caught on to the same thing he had.

Katie looked at him. "James left us a way to expose the traitor," she said. "Anyone who has had contact with the Black Cross's server from this base, their computer should have traces of the virus in it."

Katie scanned the message one more time. "Where's the code, though?" she asked.

She sat forward and scanned through James's message on the computer again. Her eyes widened for a second and she navigated back to the coding page. "You don't think?" she said.

She and Joshua looked at each other.

"The incorrect bit of code is the trigger code too?" Joshua said.

Katie scanned over the code for a second, figuring out what it would all do. "It is," she said.

Joshua looked at the ceiling, smiling and shaking his head. "James, you beautiful genius, you." He scratched at his chin, and studied the code. "Now, we've just got to plug this into every computer attached to the Ranger Project to see if one was used by the mole."

"Right," Katie said. "But the mole could be anyone. We'd have to do it without letting them catch on until it's too late."

"Right," Joshua said. "Which means we can't tell anyone in the Ranger Project what we're doing."

"And that will make us look suspicious," Katie said.

Joshua sat back, letting his strategic mind work. Katie would be best for the job since she was better at stealth and intel gathering. Lunch was almost over, meaning the complex would be full of people soon, so they wouldn't be able to do anything until the end of the day.

"Right after we're dismissed for dinner," he said. "I want you to double back, act like you left something behind. That will ease suspicion for anyone still in the complex, but it should be mostly empty at that point. Once you're in, plug the code into every single computer. Don't rule anyone out. Not Dayton, not General Kenpachi, no one. Not even me. I'd rather be safe than sorry."

"I got it," Katie said, pulling the flash drive out of the computer. "I'll see it done, Captain."

Several hours later, after they had gone back to work and spent the rest of the day going over the suit's performance with Anthony, General Kenpachi dismissed everyone to dinner. Joshua and Katie joined Dayton and the cadets on their way to the mess hall. A short distance out from the lab, Katie stopped.

"Oh," she said, "I think I forgot my pack. You guys go on ahead."

Dayton and the others glanced at her and shrugged. "Want us to save you something?" Dayton said.

"No that's okay. I won't be long." Katie nodded to Joshua. Joshua nodded back.

Leaving the group, Katie doubled back to the Ranger Project headquarters. As expected, the halls were mostly empty, most stragglers finishing up what they were doing so they could get to the mess hall. Katie walked with purpose so as not to arouse any suspicion. She came to the first room, waited until no one was around, and poked her head.

She crossed to the room's sole computer and plugged her flash drive in. Once the device was up and running, she entered James's code. No reaction. The computer remained exactly the same as far as she could tell. She clicked on a few applications just to make sure she wasn't missing anything before shutting it down. This computer was clear.

Katie stepped out into the corridor and made her way to the next room. That computer turned out to be clear too. Carefully, Katie worked through every room in the complex. Eventually, she came to General Kenpachi's office. She stared at the door for a moment, truly hoping he didn't turn out to be the one. She had grown fond of the old man. She poked her head inside to make sure he wasn't around before hacking into his computer as well. She plugged in the flash drive and repeated the process, breathing a sigh of relief to find that his computer didn't react either.

After a few more rooms, only the computers inside the lab remained. Katie wondered for a minute if she would find anything at all. It was possible that James's code was faulty. Or that the Black Cross had already eradicated the traces of the virus from their systems. She didn't dare hope that there truly wasn't even a mole at all.

Katie came to the lab door. She let a group of scientists pass by before tapping her keycard and letting herself in. The lab was empty for the moment, most of the computers having gone to sleep. Katie started with the computer next to the door and worked her way around the room. None of those on the left side reacted in any way.

She came to Anthony Starr's computer in the center of the room, connected to the worktable where the makeshift suit James had built lay. Katie looked over the suit for a minute before booting up Anthony's computer and plugging in her flash drive. She typed in the code, not expecting much to happen just like all the others. This time, however, the moment she typed it in, the entire computer lit up with hundreds, if not thousands, of files being forced open, each one popping up one after the other, to the extent that Katie worried they might crash the system.

Her eyes widened. "There's no way," she said. She glanced up at the door. "Anthony is the traitor?"

She started her flash drive downloading everything that had come up.

She leaned in close to the screen. It looked like most of them had been buried deep inside no-name folders within no-name folders within no-name folders. Most were either given no names at all, a series of incomprehensible numbers and letters, or simply "Mom." Most of them looked like they had been protected behind heavy-duty security measures, but those had all been blown clean through by James's.

She started clicking through each file. Most of them contained heavily sensitive information regarding the Ranger Project, from blueprints to recruit lists. She found her own file, alongside those of Joshua, Dayton, Doug, and Harriet. And then there were the correspondences. E-mails and messages sent back and forth between Anthony and the Black Cross dating back several years, long before the Ranger Project or EAGLE even existed. Back to the early days of Black Cross activity.

Katie pulled up a small video file created just recently. The face of the Golden Mask appeared on the screen, spreading his arms and welcoming Joshua to his trap. From the description Joshua had given in the debriefing, this looked like the video that had played inside the compound this morning. Katie squinted at the Golden Mask on the screen, a terrible thought occuring to her. She went back to the e-mails and scanned them for any reference to the Golden Mask. Every single one seemed to be in reference to Anthony himself.

"Oh, Jesus," Katie said.

"Looking for something?"

Katie froze. She stared up to see Anthony standing just inside the door watching her, his arms crossed over his chest, one eyebrow raised. Katie stared at him, her mouth open. "Doctor Starr," she said, quickly putting on a casual smile. "I thought you had gone to dinner."

Anthony stared at her a second longer before flashing her his lopsided smile and shrugging. "Forgot to call my mom," he said. "You?"

"I forgot my pack. And General Kenpachi asked me to get something off the computer since I was on my way back."

"The general sent you?" Anthony asked, stepping closer.

"Yeah," Katie said. "That intel I found today, he needed some information from the central computer to help match up some things. Don't worry, I didn't mess with any of your stuff."

She glanced down to see that the download had completed. Katie pulled out the flash drive and closed out of everything. "There we go. All done!" she said, holding up the flash drive to show him. She locked up the computer and stepped away, walking casually over to her locker to collect her pack. Anthony watched her silently, stepping around his computer to look at the screen..

"Well, I'm glad you found what you were looking for," he said.

"Thanks," Katie said. She shouldered her pack and waved. "See you tomorrow."

"See you," Anthony said, nodding, his eyes not leaving her for a second. Katie turned her back to him to show him she didn't suspect anything and opened the door. She kept walking, down the hall and out of sight of the door. Once out of view, she stopped and leaned against the wall, her mind racing. Anthony was the Golden Mask, she thought. That meant he'd led the attack on the base. That meant he'd held both Joshua and James hostage and tortured them. That meant he'd murdered James. She had to find Joshua and General Kenpachi, now.

"Everything alright?"

Katie looked up to see Anthony standing in the doorway, watching her. Katie dropped her pack and opened it up. "Oh, yeah," she said. "Just had to make sure I had everything." She dug through it, giving it a once-over before zipping it up and slinging it over her shoulder again. "We got it. Good night."

"Good night, Lieutenant Young."

Katie kept heading down the hall. She could feel Anthony's eyes on her back. She kept walking, maintaining her casual pace while trying to keep her nerves under control. He won't try anything, she tried convincing herself. Not as long as we're inside the base and the security cameras are rolling.

She rounded the corner and almost ran headlong into Dayton. "Hey," her friend said, smiling brightly. "Where you been? You never showed."

"Oh," Katie said, relieved to see his face. "I got held up," she said. "No big deal. How was dinner?" she aked.

"Oh, it was great," Dayton said, rubbing his stomach. "We saved you a bowl. We left it in the barracks—"

"Great!" Katie said. "Let's go get it right now." She grabbed his arm and steered him quickly in the opposite direction.

Dayton glanced back at Anthony. "What's going on?" he asked. He nodded to Anthony who nodded back.

"Nothing," Katie said. "Just starving. Can't wait for dinner." She flashed Dayton a warning look. He registered the look, seeming to gather that something was wrong. "Alright," he said. "Let's go. It should still be warm."

"That's great," Katie said. They walked around the corner, out of Anthony's view. "How many bowls of curry did you get through today?"

They walked together, through Ranger Project headquarters and out the high security door, making a beeline for the barracks. Joshua sat waiting on Katie's cot, a large bowl of curry sitting beside him. He got to his feet as they came in.

"What did you find out?" he said.

"Not yet," Katie said. "We need to find General Kenpachi. Immediately. Come with me. Both of you."

Joshua took in the serious expression on her face and glanced at Dayton. Dayton simply gave him a confused shrug.

"Lead the way," he said.

Katie led them both through the compound, to General Kenpachi's personal quarters. She knocked on the door, Dayton and Joshua watching the corridor. The general opened the door, dressed in his civvies.

"What is all this?" he asked, taking them all in.

"We need to talk, sir, immediately," Katie said, glancing behind her. "May we come in?"

Kenpachi looked at her face. He must have recognized how spooked she was. "Come on in," he said. He stepped aside to let them in and closed the door behind them. "What's all this about?" he asked.

Katie pulled the flash drive from her pocket. She handed it to him, her head down. "I owe you an apology, sir," she said. "I lied to you during the debriefing today. I did find something. Something important."

General Kenpachi held the flash drive in his hand. He scanned her face, then the faces of Joshua and Dayton behind her. "That's a very serious offense, Lieutenant," he said.

"I know, sir," Katie said. "I'm sorry."

General Kenpachi was silent for a moment, considering the small device he held. "And what did you find?"

Katie glanced back at Joshua. "A message, sir, left behind by James Cage. And a code to identify the mole inside the Ranger Project."

Kenpachi's eyes lit up. He gripped the drive and looked up at her. "I assume, then," he said, "that the fact you are coming to me with this now means that you have discovered the traitor's identity."

Katie nodded. "I do, sir."

"Whoa, seriously?" Dayton said, his mouth open. He thought back to their encounter in the corridor. "Oh," he said. "Then-"

"Yes," Katie said, nodding. She glanced at the door. "This room is soundproof?"

General Kenpachi nodded. "It is."

"Alright," Katie said. She took a deep breath. "The traitor is Anthony Starr."

The room was silent, everyone staring at Katie. General Kenpachi furrowed his brow. "Anthony Starr?" he said. "That doesn't make any sense. He's been with the Project since the beginning. The suits were his idea. Are you absolutely certain?"

"Yes, I am. All the evidence is on that drive."

She turned to Joshua. "There's one more thing," she said. "He's not just a mole, Josh. He's the Golden Mask."


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

The Ballad of Anthony Starr

Anthony Starr slammed his fist against the table and swore. His computer's home screen was covered with hundreds of open files, most of them related to himself and the Black Cross. "No, no, no, no, no," he said. "This can't be happening." How? How was it possible? He'd protected those documents behind the best security the Black Cross could provide.

He clicked through his files, looking at their source code. It looked like all of his security measures had been completely blown open. It almost reminded him of that virus James Cage had-

"Dang it, James!"

It was bad enough that he'd spent the last six months living in that brainiac's shadow, now James was screwing him over even in death. He rubbed his chest. His ribs still twinged from the day Joshua Cage had shattered them. Underneath his clothes and lab coat, large purple splotches covered his chest, wrapped up in thick bandages. The injuries had healed fairly well, thanks to the Black Cross's healers, but they still caused him pain from time to time. He considered it a point of personal pride that he had been able to act as though everything was normal in front of his comrades at EAGLE despite the pain.

Anthony ran his hands through his long hair, pacing back and forth. He remembered how Katie had claimed to have found something while in the lab today, but then she said it was nothing during the debriefing. Of course she did, he thought. She was probably onto him at that point. She'd probably gone to Kenpachi right after the meeting and told him all about it. And then she came here for proof.

She was probably on her way to tell General Kenpachi right now, which meant he didn't have much time before EAGLE would be after him. He needed a plan. He looked back at his computer, at the correspondences between himself and the fuhrer.

The fuhrer, he thought. He needs to know.

Anthony locked up his computer for now and left the lab, making for his barracks. Once inside, he made sure no one was around before sitting down on his cot and pulling his footlocker over. He reached inside and removed everything from it, dumping it all on his cot. He then undid the latch on the locker's false bottom and removed it, revealing a small shrine with a large black cross hand-painted above it. His costume lay folded underneath it. Anthony reached in and removed his cape and robes, their velvety material feeling just like stage curtains. He set them carefully in his lap before pulling out his mask. His true face. Anthony held it tenderly in his hand, the gleaming golden smile staring back at him.

He remembered his old life, as a struggling young actor named Roger Stevens, long before EAGLE, the Ranger Project, or even the Black Cross. He remembered being approached by the fuhrer, one night after a dismal performance of "Sam Trueheart," the fuhrer's offer to help him become the star he was meant to be.

For two years after taking up the deal, Anthony saw nothing but success. Terrible accidents befell the casting directors who tried to blackball him, and any actors who beat him out for roles suddenly found they couldn't continue in the role. Anthony suspected what was really going on, but he didn't care. He was a star.

In return, Anthony pledged his undying loyalty to the fuhrer, swearing to serve him faithfully in whatever he needed. The fuhrer came to collect a few years later, offering him a place in his glorious revolution.

"You would have to give up your acting career," he had told him. "But in giving it up, you will take on the role of a lifetime, perhaps the most important role you will ever play."

A small part of Anthony had wanted to back out, to keep his fame and stardom, but he always upheld his promises. He agreed.

Soon, the revolution began. The Black Cross was born, as was the Golden Mask. Anthony discarded everything about his old life, crafting a mask and costume based upon his old life as a stage actor. He led one of the very first Black Cross attacks, bombing a skyscraper in Angel Grove, resulting in the death of famed actor Roger Stevens, at least according to the news reports. When EAGLE was founded in response to their attacks, he was given a new name, reinvented as a young scientist named Anthony Starr. He'd always tested well in the sciences, though they were never his passion.

Once he had secured himself a place in the science division, he was paired up alongside a brilliant young scientist named Will Cranston. A bit of a nerd, all things considered, but a genius when it came to technology. After a few months working together, Will had trusted Anthony enough to show him the idea he'd been working on: plans for a series of super suits to enhance soldier performance. He wanted to present them to EAGLE's leadership when they were finished.

Seeing the potential in them, Anthony immediately reported his findings to the fuhrer. Will soon found himself the victim of a tragic accident, leaving Anthony to carry on his work. After several days of studying the blueprints like a script, he presented them as his own and got the go-ahead to begin the project. He and the Fuhrer had agreed to let EAGLE build the suits, using their advanced technology to perfect the designs, while he slipped the Black Cross details on every update.

Anthony pulled out a small communication device, the one he used every day to "call his mom." He clicked it on and the fuhrer picked up a second later. "Good evening, my son," he said, his voice gentle and inviting as always. "What news do you have for me tonight?"

"Unfortunate news, my master," he said. "I believe that my cover has been blown. I discovered one of the Red Ranger's companions going through my computer. She is reporting to General Kenpachi and the ranger as we speak."

"I see," the fuhrer said.

"I believe it was the virus that James Cage used to wipe our system. It may be used to expose more of our agents. I recommend a full sweep."

"Who knows for certain?"

"Currently, Lieutenant Katie Young, and most likely General Kenpachi, Joshua Cage, and Dayton Owens. I humbly request an extraction team be sent immediately."

The fuhrer laughed.

"I am sorry, my son," he said. "I'm afraid I cannot do that. With your identity revealed, you are merely a liability now. You knew what had to be done if you were to be discovered."

Anthony's eyes glanced quickly at his locker, where a small packet of cyanide pills sat in one corner. He swallowed.

"But, I've served you faithfully for years," Anthony said, fear and desperation filling his heart. "You can't do this. You can't just abandon me here."

"I'm sorry about this, my son. I truly am. Yours is a great loss to our movement. You will be gravely missed."

"Please!" Anthony cried.

"I hope you can make it out, my son. Forgive me."

"Wait!"

The communicator clicked and when silent. Anthony stared in stunned silence at the small device in his hand. His body shook, anger building inside him. "What was it all for?" he screamed, throwing the device against the wall and shattering it. He picked up his foot locker and smashed it against the floor, beating on it and trying his best to destroy it. Finally, he tossed it away.

He pulled out a large duffel bag. He scooped up his belongings, most importantly his Golden Mask costume, and stuffed them inside. He needed an escape plan and fast. His mind fell on the makeshift suit back in the lab.

A cruel smile crossed his face. Perfect, he thought.

He slung his bag over his shoulder, and stepped out into the hall, looking around to make sure no one was coming for him yet. He made his way briskly back to the lab, only to find that the room was occupied. Maya Kendrick, one of the scientists on his team, was working hard at her computer when he walked in. She looked up at him, adjusting her large glasses.

"Hey, Anthony," she said.

"Hey, Maya," he said, quickly putting on his casual face and stepping into the room. "What's going on?"

"Not much," she said with a shrug. "Just some quick late work."

He stepped up behind her to get a look at what she was working on. Just some notes as far as he could tell. "Heard any news?" he asked.

"Should I have?" she asked.

Anthony shrugged. "No," he said. "Just checking."

He turned away and headed back over to his own station. The makeshift suit lay on the table before it, still in as good condition it had been the day Joshua Cage had escaped from him. He clenched his fist, yearning for the power the suit offered. He ran his hand along the thick armored cloth before circling around to his computer and logging in. The suit was fully charged and everything looked to be running properly.

"Amazing, isn't it?" Maya said, walking over to join him at the table. "Did you ever think you'd end up building a real life superhero?"

"It sure is something," Anthony said. He glanced at the time, tapping his foot impatiently. He had hoped to be alone. He needed to get rid of her quickly. While she looked over the suit, Anthony casually reached down and unzipped his bag, pulling out a small device similar to Joshua's morpher. He slipping it around his wrist before standing up straight. She hadn't noticed a thing.

"Shouldn't you be heading to bed?" he said.

"Yeah," Maya said. "But I've got a lot to do, and I can't stand leaving it until morning."

"How long do you think it will take?" Anthony carefully edged himself behind her.

"About an hour, I think. Not too long."

He didn't have that long. Anthony really didn't want to do this, but he didn't really have much of a choice. He tapped the button on the device at his wrist, activating the nanotech inside. The shaft of a handle formed in his hand, and he gripped it. His large golden scythe grew to its full height in a matter of seconds, its edge gleaming and sharp.

Maya turned to look at him, her eyes widening as she took in the scythe in his hand. "What are you-"

"I'm really sorry about this, Maya," Anthony said. He sliced and she fell to the ground dead, her head a few feet away. Anthony wiped the scythe and set it aside.

He checked his readings one more time, just to be sure everything was functional. He unplugged the suit and started putting it on, fixing the harness around himself before putting on the coat, gloves, and boots, connecting everything and making sure it all worked properly. He left the helmet sitting where it was. He had his own mask.

He opened his bag and pulled out the Golden Mask, holding it tenderly in his hand. He fixed it onto his head and clasped it shut. He then pulled out his cape and tied it around his shoulders, getting a good look at himself in the mirror. He clenched his fist and felt a surge of strength flow through his arm. Incredible, he thought, clenching and unclenching again and again. He reached out and picked up his scythe, gripping the weapon firmly in his hand.

He looked down at Doctor Kendrick's body on the floor. "Since we're here," he thought, "I might as well leave a few more bodies lying around before I go."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

The Red Ranger vs. The Golden Mask

Alarms blared overhead as General Kenpachi looked through the evidence Katie had brought him, Joshua, Katie, and Dayton huddled around him.

"What the devil?" the general said. He picked up the communicator on his desk. "What's happening out there?"

"We're under attack, sir," General Blake's voice game through. "A Black Cross mask got into the base somehow. He got his hands on the old ranger suit."

Joshua, Katie, and Dayton looked at each other as General Kenpachi swore. He tapped on his computer and pulled up what looked like live camera feed for the whole base. Joshua could see soldiers running for their lives as the Golden Mask appeared behind them, his cape flaring behind him like a phantom as he chased them at inhuman speeds, cutting off their heads with single, swift strokes of his scythe. Under the cloak, Joshua could see brief glimpses of the makeshift suit he had escaped in.

"This is bad," Dayton said.

The Golden Mask chased the fleeing soldiers, crossing the distance in a split second. They never stood a chance. Joshua couldn't help but see himself in it all, how he had gone after the Black Cross soldiers on the day he had escaped. He felt a brief twinge of shame.

"I've got to go stop him," he said, clenching his fist.

His friends turned to look at him. "Then we're going too," Katie said.

"No," Joshua said. He nodded to the screen. "You see what he's doing to the regular soldiers. I'd rather have you here to protect the general."

Katie opened her mouth to argue, but Dayton cut in.

"Alright, Cap," he said. "I get it." He didn't look very happy about it. Katie looked even less so. She looked away.

"I guess I do too," she said.

General Kenpachi kept looking at the screen. He seemed to be thinking very hard about something, but whatever it was, he didn't share it. "We'll support you from here," he said.

"Thank you, General."

Joshua stepped out into the middle of the room, facing his friends, and tapped his morpher. In mere seconds, the suit spread across his body, the harness forming around his torso, arms, and legs, followed by the gloves, boots, belt, and the birdie rockets at his side. His helmet formed around his head, his visor covering his eyes and it's heads-up display lighting up..

Joshua could feel the strength and power flowing through him. It was time.

He nodded to his friends. "I'll be back," he said.

"Good luck out there, Captain," Dayton said, saluting him.

Katie still avoided his eyes. She punched his arm gently. "Be safe out there," she said.

"I will," Joshua said. "I promise."

Joshua turned away and opened the door. The sound of screaming met his ears. Joshua shut the door behind him and took off down the hall, racing as fast as he could, following his visor as it directed him toward the Golden Mask. He weaved through the corridors at lightning speed, his visor alerting him the exact moment to turn each corner to avoid crashing. He past several soldiers running to escape, among them Doug and Harriet.

"Guys," he shouted, skidding to a stop.

"Captain," Harriet said, "the Golden Mask is here. We don't know how he got in, but he's killing everybody."

"I know," Joshua said. "Katie and Dayton are with General Kenpachi in his quarters. I want you to go and join them, understand? Hurry, go now!"

They looked at each other and nodded. "Yes sir," they said.

They raced off in that direction, while Joshua kept going in the other. He rounded one last corner onto a scene of absolute carnage. Soldiers, scientists, and officials ran as fast as they could while blood splattered the walls and bodies littered the floors. At the very center of it all was Anthony Starr, the Golden Mask, his mask gleaming as if freshly polished, his black cloak swishing with every movement. He slashed his scythe left and right, severing a head with every strike. The soldiers tried to get away, but he was too fast.

Joshua grabbed at his belt and his gun formed in his hand. He fired, and the bullet ricocheted off Anthony's mask with a ding. Bulletproof. Of course.

Anthony stopped. He looked up, fixing his permanent golden smile on Joshua. Joshua stepped aside to let the remaining survivors flee past him.

"Well, well, well," Anthony's voice said from behind the mask. "If it isn't Little Baby Brother Cage, all dressed up in his superhero costume to impress his big bro."

Joshua clenched his fist.

The Golden Mask spread his arms, opening his cape to show off James's old makeshift suit. "Quite the suits, aren't they?" he said. "Can you imagine what we could do with these things? We could take out EAGLE and the Black Cross singlehandedly. We'd never have to deal with this bloody war ever again."

Joshua kept his gun pointed at him. "You don't have to do all this, Anthony," he said. "We were your friends."

The Golden Mask tipped his head to the side. He let out a short mocking laugh. "Oh, please," he said. "You were never _my_ friends. You were Anthony Starr's friends. Anthony Starr never existed. He was a role I played. A character I made up. And that's all he ever will be." He spread his robes wide one more time, pausing for dramatic effect. "I am, have always been, and will forever be the glorious Golden Mask."

"You don't have to kill all these people," Joshua tried again.

"Oh, but I do," the Golden Mask said, gesturing at the dozen or so headless bodies around him. "I really, really do. It's just way too much fun not to."

In the blink of an eye, he raced toward Joshua and punched him with all of his might square in the chest, making him stumble backwards. It didn't hurt, per se, though it was the most damage anyone had done to him while in the suit so far.

"Remember that move?" Anthony asked. He rubbed his own chest. "You left quite the bruise there on me last time." He came at Joshua again with his scythe.

Joshua blocked it and grappled with him for a few seconds, both of them evenly matched in strength. They pushed back and forth, slamming each other hard into the wall behind them, and forcing each other around in a circle. The Golden Mask cocked his head to the side.

"Thanks for that," he said, pulling free and darting off down the hall after the fleeing soldiers.

"Oh, no, you don't!" Joshua said, chasing after him. He clenched his hand in front of his mask and summoned his whip, whipping it out after Anthony and wrapping him up. With a mighty tug, Joshua yanked him backward and slammed him up against the wall, his hand against his chest.

Anthony chuckled. "You think this whip can hold me?" he said. He strained against the whip with all his might and shattered it into pieces. Joshua stumbled backwards in surprise. "Come on, Baby Cage. These things weren't made to hold up against a ranger. I made sure of that one."

He attacked with his scythe. Joshua dodged quickly out of the way. He tapped the button on his whip and, to his relief, it reformed good as new. He tapped it again, switching it to its rapier form and blocked the Golden Mask's next strike. They clashed again and again, rapier against scythe. Joshua grabbed Anthony and threw him headfirst through the nearest wall. Anthony did the same, their fight carrying them through room after room. Soon, they found themselves inside the reception area, demolishing the desk in the process.

Anthony glanced at the nearby elevator shaft. "Let's take this outside, shall we?" he said, breaking away from Joshua and forcing his way into the elevator. He started up his birdie rockets and launched straight through the elevator's ceiling and up through the shaft.

Joshua followed him, starting up his own rockets and chasing after him. They flew up and up, through the shaft and out into the empty snack shop, smashing at high speed through the front glass window, punching and kicking at each other. Joshua grabbed the Golden Mask and slammed him into the street, leaving a deep crater in his wake. He rolled him over and punched him in the face, cracking the front of the mask. Anthony pushed Joshua off of him, getting to his feet and coming at him with the scythe. Joshua blocked it with his rapier and they clashed several more times. As they fought, more and more civilians started emerging from their homes.

Oh no, Joshua thought.

Anthony noticed them to, racing for the nearest one. Joshua chased after him and blocked his path, but Anthony tossed him aside with a swift elbow. He raised his scythe to strike.

A bullet shot out of nowhere, striking the scythe and knocking it from of his hands, sending it skittering across the road. Both Joshua and Anthony turned to see Katie crouching behind the demolished store front, brandishing a gun, Dayton, Doug, and Harriet beside her.

"Well, well, well," the Golden Mask chuckled. "Look what we have here." He darted toward them.

"No, you don't!" Joshua said. He placed himself between them once again, but this time, he was ready. He blocked the Golden Mask's elbow, then balled up his fist and punched him hard in the chest, right in the sore spot. The force of the punch threw the Golden Mask across the street, smashing into a jewelry store's front window.

Joshua turned to look at his comrades. "What are you doing here?" he demanded.

"I sent them, Captain," General Kenpachi's voice said through his helmet's radio.

"General?" he asked.

Katie looked a little self-conscious. She rose from behind the broken wall, grasping a small, silvery sphere, about the same size and shape as a soccer ball. "I sent them to bring you this," the general said.

Katie handed it to him, looking down. It was light like a soccer ball too. "What is it?" Joshua asked.

"A bomb," General Kenpachi said. "A very powerful bomb. Designed specifically to be used on rangers."

Joshua's eyes widened as the implication set in. "What?"

Katie scowled slightly.

"We needed a contingency, Captain," the General said. "In case one of you went rogue. I'm sorry. The bomb will explode with the force of an atom bomb, but it is designed to keep its explosion contained, so it destroys the target and only the target."

Joshua scowled but nodded. He turned to face the Golden Mask, who was just barely picking his way out of the destroyed jewelry store, rubbing his chest where he'd been hit. He seemed to be wheezing in pain. His cracked mask had shattered slightly, revealing half of his face. His exposed eye fell on the bomb in Joshua's hands.

"Oh, no," he said, a slight tremor of fear in his voice. He clicked on his birdies again and started them up. He lifted into the air, his rockets sparking and sputtering for a few seconds before dropping him right back to the ground. Apparently they'd been damaged slightly in their fight. He cast a quick glance at Joshua and the bomb before taking off down the street on foot, his superpowered legs carrying him at incredible speed.

Joshua thought quickly. He couldn't let him get away. Not with that suit. He looked at the bomb, its resemblance to a soccer ball giving him an idea. "Everyone, circle up!" he shouted to his team. They all nodded and came out of hiding and circled him. Joshua kicked the bomb toward Dayton.

"Dayton!"

"Got it," Dayton said, headbutting it toward Harriet.

"Doug!" Harriet shouted, kicking it.

Doug caught it. "Katie!"

Katie kicked it toward Joshua. Joshua used its own speed to send it up into the air before leaping up himself and kicking it with all the force he could muster.

The bomb rocketed at supersonic speed toward the Golden Mask's back, striking him right between the shoulder blades. Joshua's visor alerted him the second it struck, and he detonated it. The bomb exploded with tremendous force, launching a pillar of fire high into the sky. Nanites spread out around it, containing the blast, absorbing the radiation, and sending the flames upward. Anthony let out one final scream as the bomb ripped through his suit and himself with it. After a few seconds, he was gone, reduced to mere atoms, a small scorched pockmark left in the street.

"We got him!" Doug said with his mouth open.

Dayton let out a whoop. "We did it," he said, grinning broadly.

Katie stepped over to where his scythe lay on the ground and picked it up. Her bullet had shattered the handle. She glanced back up at Joshua. "Nice shooting, Captain," she said.

Joshua smiled back at her. "Thanks for the help, Katie," he said.

The next morning, Joshua found himself in General Kenpachi's office. They'd had a long night, cleaning up the bodies and repairing what they could. Anthony had left quite the mess in his wake.

We've analyzed everything Lieutenant Young collected last night."

Joshua didn't respond.

"I would like you to know that Miss Young will not be seeing any disciplinary action for any of her actions yesterday. I vouched for her good intentions before the committee, and they agreed to let it all slide."

Joshua nodded. "Thank you, sir."

The general brought out a number of files. "It seems that Anthony Starr was indeed a false identity created sometime around the inception of EAGLE itself, with fake documents and credentials and everything. Which tells me we need to start looking at some of those in charge of that."

Joshua looked over the papers General Kenpachi put before him. "Roger Stevens?" he asked. He looked up at the general. "Like the actor?"

The general nodded. "It seems so."

Joshua looked through the paper. "My family went to see a show of his once," he said. "I think I remember he died in the very first Black Cross attack."

"That is what our records show," Kenpachi said grimly. He shuffled through his files for a second. "EAGLE owes you a great deal, Mister Cage. You, and Lieutenant Young, and your brother. Thanks to you, we have uncovered a mole who almost undid every ounce of work we have done in the last five years, and prevented him from delivering a very powerful weapon to our sworn enemies."

"And thanks to your brother," he said, holding Katie's flash drive in his hand, "We can hopefully identify a few more traitors in our midst before the Black Cross can wipe their system clean."

Joshua smiled. That was his brother. General Kenpachi handed him the flash drive. "Make sure Miss Young gets that back."

Joshua closed his hand around the drive. "Will do, sir."

General Kenpachi smiled for a brief moment. He cleared his throat again and went back to his papers. "I am sorry," he finally said, "about the bomb. Its construction was mandated by the committee as a backup in case things went south with the project. I thought we should tell you about them, but the top brass vetoed that instantly."

"I get it," Joshua said. He looked up at the general, whose eyes shone with genuine remorse. "It was a good plan," he said. "And it came in handy last night. I imagine we may have to use it a few more times before this war is done."

General Kenpachi scowled. "I hate to admit it, but I think you're right."

He gathered up his papers and put them back inside the file. "I think that should be just about it, Captain Cage," he said, getting to his feet. He saluted him. "Thank you for your service."

Joshua stood and saluted him back. "My pleasure, General."

"Dismissed."


	13. Post-Credits Scene

Post-Credits Scene

Shade of Blue

Whish!

Katie kicked the soccer ball, sending it over to Doug, who was then intercepted by Harriet. He passed it back to Katie who took it on to the end goal where Dayton waited. Katie and Dayton locked eyes, Dayton extending a silent challenge to bring it on. Katie nodded, accepting that challenge.

Joshua sat on the sidelines nearby, sitting this match out to watch his team play. He smiled up at the sunshine beaming down on their heads. He took a swig of his water, feeling the cool summer breeze through his hair. It was nice to have a real field for himself and his team to play on again.

Behind him was a brand-new base, similar to the old one, though now in a completely different area of Silver City. A door opened on the side of the brownstone building directly beside him, and General Kenpachi stepped out. The old officer took off his hat and wiped his balding head, glancing up at the sun. He watched the soldiers play for a second before stepping up to where Joshua sat. "Captain," he said.

"General," Joshua replied..

"How's the game going?"

"Pretty good." Joshua gestured to the seat beside him. "Have a seat."

The old general did so, pulling out a small file from his briefcase and flipping through it. "Thought you ought to know," he said. "We've just about finished production on the second Ranger suit. Blue this time."

Joshua nodded, watching as Katie and Harriet tussled over the ball.

"We'll be starting our search for candidates very soon."

Joshua looked over at the general in confusion. "I already have my team," he said. He nodded to his friends out on the field.

General Kenpachi smiled. "Yes, well," he said. "Unfortunately, the committee gets a say in that. You can submit their names though. See how it goes. I imagine they'll have a strong standing at the very least."

Joshua rolled his eyes. Of course the committee had to have the deciding vote.

"We do have one potential candidate lined up already," the general said, looking over his file. "A young soldier out in Corinth. I've got an agent out there, and she's been sending me some promising reports so far. Thought you might be interested in looking him over."

Joshua raised an eyebrow and took the file the general offered him. He flipped it open onto a number of personal and military records, all clipped together with a small photograph of a young man with long blonde hair wearing a cowboy hat.

The story will continue in:

THE BLUE RANGER

Coming 7/18/2020


End file.
